A wonderful, thought provoking essay, Gill! I always admire artists, that are able to transport ‘political’ messages through their work. Edward Burtynsky, Robert Adams and Richard Misrach do it in a way which really inspires me. And as you said, even if we don’t reach the masses with our own work, being aware and learning about what’s going on around us (your photos and writing are a wonderful example) is just as fundamental and important.
Thank you for your post. It chimed a lot with what I've been pondering, but not quite articulated. You have prompted me to consider this more.
I've been a keen photographer for a few decades, but for a long while didn't have a reason beyond photographing things that interested me. Which is fine. But in the last couple of years I've been motivated by photographing under appreciated post-war buildings which are threatened with demolition. Learning about why they were built and why they are special.
20% of global carbon emissions are in the construction industry of which 80% are in demolition. Reusing buildings must be a better option than demolition...
So we are united in photographing waste... one rural, one urban!
Thank you for this interesting article. And for highlighting the problem of the plastic coverings of crops, this isn't something I had on my horizon, even though environmental themes are always foremost on my mind. I wonder now also, whether it is yet another source of microplastics in our food... surely some of that must rub off on the vegetables we eat.
As for why I photograph, it is hard to explain. I don't make money with it, nor has that ever been my goal. It is for the sheer pleasure of capturing scenes that strike me, framing something that catches my eye. I started out with landscape and travel photography long long ago (been at this some 40 years). To hold on, I suppose, to the emotions these things give me. By now I do everything from the former two to reportage, stage photography, garden flowers, and even a bit of abstract and experimental. And all of it gives me immense pleasure.
Personally I'm a hobby photographer and enjoy trying to capture the beauty of nature and landscape to produce beautiful images. I also love how photography gets me out into the outdoors and lets me spend time in the landscape in a slower and more reflective way than when I am just going for a walk.
However I am also interested in how photography can be used to communicate a message though I am not sure how I could do it myself. Your blog is thought provoking and the timing is coincidental as I went to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Natural History Museum last Friday. ( I did one of the guided tours and it was really good - I would definitely recommend it.) It was clear the judges like photographs which highlight the impact of humans on the natural world and the ways in which wildlife adapts to living alongside people, that is definitely a theme running through quite a number of the photographs. Look at the Young Grand Title Winner's photograph and find the owls!(All the pictures can be seen on line if you can't make it to the exhibition https://www.nhm.ac.uk/wpy/gallery. )There is also a short film at the exhibition about two photographers who have used their photography to help wildlife - one highlighting the precarious existence of sloths as an endanged species and another campaigning against the keeping of big cats as pets in America which helped to bring about a change in the law. Lots of food for thought!
Another thought-provoking article Gill. I take photographs for a number of reasons – to portray the beauty and occasional the quirkiness of the landscape I’m in; to try to convey the inner peace that being in nature brings me; to document an area before it changes, which nowadays is sadly all too soon; more and more I feel I’m trying to do the latter.
Photography can be just as powerful, if not more so, than writing when it comes to the message of conservation and environmental impact of man and machine. I can only imagine how much quicker the response to Silent Spring by Rachel Carsen would have been had it been accompanied by images of the impact of pesticides. Edward Burtynsky’s work is quite incredible and the scale the images are presented is so impactful they are hard to ignore. Your article also made me think of Fay Godwin, who brought the issues around conservation back in the 1980’s and 90’s, from environmental and water pollution to conifer plantations in place of ancient woodlands to the fore through her work in Our Forbidden Land.
I am mostly a landscape / scenic photographer. I shoot the kinds of scenes I would want to have on my living room wall -- if I had a living room with a wall.
That is almost my only motivation. I love beauty, and want to capture it.
It has served me well. I now have thousands of really beautiful shots in my portfolio, and now that I am old, it gives me great pleasure looking at them and remembering when I was there.
I think of myself as an artistic landscape photographer, rather than a documentary photographer. I hope to capture a feeling and sense of awe and of the profound. The goal is to inspire this sense in others and drive a motivation to protect and preserve nature. However, I can see where there is more work to be done. Perhaps working with a local conservation group, who might use the artistic photos to actively promote conservation?
Very thoughtful and makes you consider who and what and why for me I think I have many different aspects/reasons for taking images take for fill the passion and share enjoyment of being out
Interesting! Photography, art or documentary? Approaching the subject from the viewer, we are drawn to images that appeal, and follow artists/photographers that produce work in a style we are drawn to. What appeals to some may not be the same with others.
As a professional photographer you have found your niche, if you were to change, would it be successful and would you retain your following and current income stream? Perhaps the world change and the human impact is something that could be a project, personally a single voice, would be like shouting in a vacuum, I think if you were to go down that route beyond a personal project, alliance to larger groups would be required, furnishing them with images to illustrate their message, stock Photography may be another route?
Thinking more deeply, do I sense another book on the horizon?
Your question, what sort of photographer am I?, hobbyist, and follower of those whose style appeals.
The main reason why I rolled into street photography is that it allows me to empty my mind quickly. During lunch breaks I used to keep on thinking about work related stuff. Now I just take out my Fuji and I'm instantly in another world.
All great thoughts, Gill. You definitely have to go out with passion, wonder and engagement. My images always reflect when I haven't been fully 'in the moment' as there's no connection there.
An important question, good thoughts Gill. Photography has definitely opened me up to learning about the natural world.
In the last day or so, I was reading up on bluebells vs hyacinth which is something I would not have really considered previous to picking up a camera. Same with different species of birds or other plants.
I've also found in recent years that writing about photography has pushed that even further, where I start getting into whole branches of technology that I had not studied or fully understood before.
More fundamentally, I find there is something really powerful about stopping to think, "Why did I take that photo", or, "what attracted me to create that photo."
When you begin exploring those questions, you really start to understand yourself.
A wonderful, thought provoking essay, Gill! I always admire artists, that are able to transport ‘political’ messages through their work. Edward Burtynsky, Robert Adams and Richard Misrach do it in a way which really inspires me. And as you said, even if we don’t reach the masses with our own work, being aware and learning about what’s going on around us (your photos and writing are a wonderful example) is just as fundamental and important.
Very thought provoking. An aspect I've been thinking about for a while now. Maybe it's time for me also to start telling the story.
Thank you for your post. It chimed a lot with what I've been pondering, but not quite articulated. You have prompted me to consider this more.
I've been a keen photographer for a few decades, but for a long while didn't have a reason beyond photographing things that interested me. Which is fine. But in the last couple of years I've been motivated by photographing under appreciated post-war buildings which are threatened with demolition. Learning about why they were built and why they are special.
20% of global carbon emissions are in the construction industry of which 80% are in demolition. Reusing buildings must be a better option than demolition...
So we are united in photographing waste... one rural, one urban!
Thank you for this interesting article. And for highlighting the problem of the plastic coverings of crops, this isn't something I had on my horizon, even though environmental themes are always foremost on my mind. I wonder now also, whether it is yet another source of microplastics in our food... surely some of that must rub off on the vegetables we eat.
As for why I photograph, it is hard to explain. I don't make money with it, nor has that ever been my goal. It is for the sheer pleasure of capturing scenes that strike me, framing something that catches my eye. I started out with landscape and travel photography long long ago (been at this some 40 years). To hold on, I suppose, to the emotions these things give me. By now I do everything from the former two to reportage, stage photography, garden flowers, and even a bit of abstract and experimental. And all of it gives me immense pleasure.
Personally I'm a hobby photographer and enjoy trying to capture the beauty of nature and landscape to produce beautiful images. I also love how photography gets me out into the outdoors and lets me spend time in the landscape in a slower and more reflective way than when I am just going for a walk.
However I am also interested in how photography can be used to communicate a message though I am not sure how I could do it myself. Your blog is thought provoking and the timing is coincidental as I went to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Natural History Museum last Friday. ( I did one of the guided tours and it was really good - I would definitely recommend it.) It was clear the judges like photographs which highlight the impact of humans on the natural world and the ways in which wildlife adapts to living alongside people, that is definitely a theme running through quite a number of the photographs. Look at the Young Grand Title Winner's photograph and find the owls!(All the pictures can be seen on line if you can't make it to the exhibition https://www.nhm.ac.uk/wpy/gallery. )There is also a short film at the exhibition about two photographers who have used their photography to help wildlife - one highlighting the precarious existence of sloths as an endanged species and another campaigning against the keeping of big cats as pets in America which helped to bring about a change in the law. Lots of food for thought!
I found this to be a thoughtful piece. A balanced play of personal insight and advice. Nice work! And wonderful plastic farm imagery. 👊🏼
Another thought-provoking article Gill. I take photographs for a number of reasons – to portray the beauty and occasional the quirkiness of the landscape I’m in; to try to convey the inner peace that being in nature brings me; to document an area before it changes, which nowadays is sadly all too soon; more and more I feel I’m trying to do the latter.
Photography can be just as powerful, if not more so, than writing when it comes to the message of conservation and environmental impact of man and machine. I can only imagine how much quicker the response to Silent Spring by Rachel Carsen would have been had it been accompanied by images of the impact of pesticides. Edward Burtynsky’s work is quite incredible and the scale the images are presented is so impactful they are hard to ignore. Your article also made me think of Fay Godwin, who brought the issues around conservation back in the 1980’s and 90’s, from environmental and water pollution to conifer plantations in place of ancient woodlands to the fore through her work in Our Forbidden Land.
I am mostly a landscape / scenic photographer. I shoot the kinds of scenes I would want to have on my living room wall -- if I had a living room with a wall.
That is almost my only motivation. I love beauty, and want to capture it.
It has served me well. I now have thousands of really beautiful shots in my portfolio, and now that I am old, it gives me great pleasure looking at them and remembering when I was there.
A very thought provoking piece and thank you from a moment catcher for the recommendations.
I think of myself as an artistic landscape photographer, rather than a documentary photographer. I hope to capture a feeling and sense of awe and of the profound. The goal is to inspire this sense in others and drive a motivation to protect and preserve nature. However, I can see where there is more work to be done. Perhaps working with a local conservation group, who might use the artistic photos to actively promote conservation?
Another inspiring read that has made me think
Very thoughtful and makes you consider who and what and why for me I think I have many different aspects/reasons for taking images take for fill the passion and share enjoyment of being out
Interesting! Photography, art or documentary? Approaching the subject from the viewer, we are drawn to images that appeal, and follow artists/photographers that produce work in a style we are drawn to. What appeals to some may not be the same with others.
As a professional photographer you have found your niche, if you were to change, would it be successful and would you retain your following and current income stream? Perhaps the world change and the human impact is something that could be a project, personally a single voice, would be like shouting in a vacuum, I think if you were to go down that route beyond a personal project, alliance to larger groups would be required, furnishing them with images to illustrate their message, stock Photography may be another route?
Thinking more deeply, do I sense another book on the horizon?
Your question, what sort of photographer am I?, hobbyist, and follower of those whose style appeals.
The main reason why I rolled into street photography is that it allows me to empty my mind quickly. During lunch breaks I used to keep on thinking about work related stuff. Now I just take out my Fuji and I'm instantly in another world.
All great thoughts, Gill. You definitely have to go out with passion, wonder and engagement. My images always reflect when I haven't been fully 'in the moment' as there's no connection there.
An important question, good thoughts Gill. Photography has definitely opened me up to learning about the natural world.
In the last day or so, I was reading up on bluebells vs hyacinth which is something I would not have really considered previous to picking up a camera. Same with different species of birds or other plants.
I've also found in recent years that writing about photography has pushed that even further, where I start getting into whole branches of technology that I had not studied or fully understood before.
More fundamentally, I find there is something really powerful about stopping to think, "Why did I take that photo", or, "what attracted me to create that photo."
When you begin exploring those questions, you really start to understand yourself.