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The Power of Photography
Photography is a powerful force that can change, and transform our lives, for the better. Photography is amazing, and powerful.
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1. Why I love street photography
Consider, photography gives us the power to build our social skills and courage.
For me, the biggest benefit of street photography: learning the confidence, courage, to take risks by taking photos of strangers. Also, learning how to interact with strangers.
2. Health and mental benefits
The benefit of photography:
- In order to make pictures, we must leave the apartment.
- Leaving the apartment is a good thing– it forces us to interact with the ‘real world’, allows us to walk, stretch our hips, think, and meditate.
- Therefore in the process of making pictures (by walking around, interacting with the world), we are strengthening and healing our minds. We give our minds the opportunity to also wander — to actually THINK (something that seems to be of in short supply nowadays).
3. Meeting new people
Whenever I do photography workshops, the biggest benefit is bringing people together.
Humans are social creatures. Without social interaction, intercourse, or connection– we start to become depressed, we start to lose a zest for living, and we start to die.
Photography has given me the opportunity to open my mind to different peoples, different cultures, to travel, and to explore the world. It has broadened and opened up my horizons.
I love meeting other photographers at coffee shops, sitting, and not just talking photography– but life. We discuss politics, philosophy, psychology, economics, and everything in-between.
Photography is an excuse to be more social. Even when you call up a friend to go on a ‘photo walk’ — what better thing to do than to walk with a friend, snap a few pictures, chat, catch up, and feel that human-social warmth?
4. Photography as a creative outlet
Photography also gives us a creative outlet.
As humans, we are all born as artists. We have this inner-drive, and this inner-need to express our creativity.
I think we all have infinite amounts of creative energy and power dammed up within ourselves– kind of like creative steam inside a pressure cooker. But if you keep your creativity pot on the stove for too long (without releasing the creative steam)– the whole thing will explode.
You need a way to channel your creative energy and steam in a positive way.
For example, steam power is what drove a lot of early locomotion and trains. I think now our creative power and steam can drive our creative locomotion — creative movement of walking and taking pictures, of moving our hands and drawing/painting, by dancing, writing poetry, making videos and films, or whatever.
Anything that gives you a positive channel to express and release your creative steam is a good thing. And photography is one of the easiest, cheapest, most accessible, and most democratic ways to express your creativity.
5. How photography has personally benefitted me
Personal benefits from photography that I’ve gotten:
- Health benefits: Improved mood by walking around a lot, by getting out of the apartment, by exercising my legs (after a full day of shooting, my leg muscles feel good and sore).
- Social benefits: Opening up my heart to new ideas, people, and cultures.
- Pursuing my inner-curiosity: I often walk in the streets and go down alley-ways that interest me, or step into stores that interest me. Photography gives me a reason to be curious. Because my excuse is, ‘I am curious in order to make pictures.’ Nobody can blame me — if they ask me, ‘What are you doing?’ I can just respond, ‘Don’t mind me, I’m just wandering around and taking pictures.’ People shrug their shoulders and say, ‘Oh– okay!’
- Opportunity to share and teach: This is one of my biggest passions– to create and obtain information and knowledge, and to share it with others. To me, information and knowledge is sterile, dull, useless– without fellow human beings to share this information to empower others with. This is why I keep all my materials open source — so anyone can easily access, download, transmit, remix, share, and empower themselves — with the information. Of course, what you decide to do with the knowledge and information is up to you. But at least you got the access.
- Critical Observation: I’ve found that I’ve become more political or socially conscious and aware of class and race differences, through photography. For example, after a trip to Washington DC — I was able to photograph and spot and notice gentrification, ‘in the flesh’ (or better yet, ‘through pictures’). By taking pictures, I have to force myself to ‘notice’ the world, things, and changes around me. Therefore in short, photography has made me more perceptive, critical, and observant of the world around me– in order for me to make my own social critiques, commentary, and to state my own opinion on the state of the world and nation.
6. Photography as a social-political power
I also find the power of photography is to show beauty.
Ansel Adams was able to conserve the beauty of the national forests by photographing them — and by showing the president and the masses:
These photographs are a testament to the beauty of nature. We should not tear down these beautiful forests to just build condos for millennials.
Of course I just made that up.
But Ansel Adams did indeed push for conservation efforts. Therefore, to me, ultimately — Ansel Adams was first and foremost a nature-lover. He showed his love of nature through his photography. And he used his photographic skills to show his appreciation of the beauty of nature with the public– and then the public then understood why nature was so important, and therefore rallied together to protect nature.
Therefore, photography was a social-political tool that Ansel Adams used to protect nature.
7. Express your gratitude towards life through photography
For me, I want to show through my photography:
The world is a beautiful place. Be grateful to be alive. While you’re alive, use photography as a tool to express your gratitude for being alive– and share that joy with others.
I do this by photographing strangers, buildings, places, and the love of my life– Cindy. I wish everyone could start their own ‘Cindy Project‘ — photographing their loved ones, MEMENTO MORI (knowing that one day, they will die). So using photography as a tool to remind yourself: I am grateful for my loved ones.
8. YOU GOT THE POWER!
Photography is one of the ultimate powers in life. Don’t squander your power. Express your greatest, and fullest joy and affirmation for life through blessing it with your lens.
BE STRONG,
ERIC