In an era that is saturated in photos, I wanted to touch on what photography means to me. This isn’t a history lesson on photography, or anything more than my opinion. That is part of photography’s beauty. The amount of things it can express is nearly limitless. This is true with art in general, but photography bleeds into other aspects of society. It is nearly impossible to go about your day and not see some form of it. Our world is built of images. That is one thing I love about this art medium. We see visuals when reading news articles. We see photos of our friend’s most recent vacation. We post or frame our own pictures for the world to see. Photography is closely stitched into the lives of people.
Life Magazine published an issue titled 100 Photographs - The Most Important Pictures of All Time And the Stories Behind Them. That issue was the original inspiration for this post. As I browsed the photos listed and read their impact on society, a deeper appreciation for photography grew in me. These images are memories that no one is ready to lose and events humanity will not soon forget. Think of a time when the camera was not invented. (The first camera wasn’t invented until around 1816.) Things were not so easily proven then. Photography changed that. Photos became record. Photos became proof. Photos became art. Eventually, “pic or it didn’t happen” became a funny, but kind of true idea. Ansel Adams’s gorgeous collection of images from Yellowstone National Park shared the stunning artistry that is nature.
“Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite National Park,” by Ansel Adams, about 1937.Credit...The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust, via Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Photos captured by the Hubble Space Telescope titled the Pillars of Creation bring the limitless universe to our eyes.
“Pillars of Creation,” by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.
I could write entire posts about these images alone. Life magazine includes 98 more images with impacts similar or even greater than these two, and that list does not scratch the surface on how powerful photography is.
I could write (gush) for pages on how different kinds of photos impact different people. Isn’t it cool to see what your grandparents looked like at your age? Isn’t it amazing to be able to see images of space or the depths of the oceans? Aren’t photos from your childhood like a stationary time machine to things you may have forgotten? Photography to me is dual parts expression and record. It is life contained and expressed in a static image.
I love this medium of art (if that wasn’t clear already.) Photography to me is simply sharing the joy of life with people. That is why I shoot weddings as a large part of my business. Few events in life capture the excitement and love contained on a wedding day. Photography is limitless creativity. Photography is a shared smile. Photography is a wonderful memory cherished. That is what photography is to me.
Two lovebirds I captured at Stowe Botanical Gardens.
Chris Leach