These are the photography quotes I believe to be the most true, based on my personal life experiences:

“You don’t take a photo, you make it.” – Ansel Adams

To ‘take’ a photo isn’t quite accurate. When you shoot a photo, you generally must select the photo, and post-process it to look the way you want.

Furthermore, to ‘make‘ a photograph implies that it is a creative act. You CREATE a photograph, you CREATE the image, and you CREATE the emotion/mood in the photograph.

Thus realize that photography is beyond just shooting scenes. You must also be selective, and also yield your post-processing skills like a painter.

“If your photos aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.” – Robert Capa

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With physical proximity comes emotional proximity. This means, get close to your subject (I am anti-zoom and telephoto lens) using a wide-angle lens (like a 24mm, 28mm, or 35mm lens).

The upside of using a prime lens and getting close to your subject and filling the frame with them is this:

You feel like you’re standing right next to them. Thus, you feel more emotionally connected to the subject.

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“All photos are accurate, none of them truth.” – Richard Avedon

What Richard Avedon meant is this:

The camera “factually” captures all the light in a scene. But the inner-“truth” behind-the-scenes isn’t conveyed through the camera.

Which then makes us wonder:

Is there any ultimate ‘truth’ behind photos?

Of course not! And this is what I love about photography! The viewer can create any interpretation of the scene they desire. This is what makes photographs much more interesting to engage with, as they deal with reality and interpretation. So in this sense, a photograph is both objective AND subjective.

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Conclusion: Create your own quotes

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This is what I believe:

Use the masters of the past as motivation/inspiration. But ultimately you must create and dictate your own personal truths in photography.

And also realize that your understanding, knowledge, and passion in photography is always in a state of flux. This means never stop learning, experimenting, evolving, growing, and changing as a photographer. There isn’t an ultimate destination in photography or final form. The constant growth is what makes photography interesting and fun!

For example, some of my sayings:

• “Buy books, not gear“
• “Buy experiences, not stuff.”
• “JUST SHOOT IT.”

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Discover your own truths in photography!

ERIC