My Inspiration

Marvin Heiferman never really explained to use what photography means to him. However he did explain what it was, its use, how it changed, and how it influences us. He stated "Photography was essential to each of our pursuits. And each person in the room, because of his or her training, responsibilities, or interests used and spoke about photography differently." Showing us that photography is not just an art but a tool used in many different pursuits. Since it is used in many different ways and for many different reasons it does not hold just one definition. However Marvin defined it well when he said "What made an effective, good, or even beautiful picture depended entirely on who was doing the looking and the talking." I believe that he meant that art holds a different sort of beauty for every person. A biologist might find photographs of a germ or virus beautiful while an archaeologist might find photos of an ancient civilization beautiful. As a wise man once said "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Marvin then moved on to explain how because of technology, like the smartphone, anyone can be a photographer. While I agree that anyone can take pictures these days I don't think that would make them a photographer. I see photography as an art and the photographer an artist. And to become a great artist takes time and practice. Finally he went on to say how not only do we shape photography but photography shapes us. I believe in this he was telling us that photography shapes our way of life. Photography surrounds us in our everyday lives. Heiferman found that an estimated "1.3 billion new photographic images are made daily". That is not including surveillance cameras. In this day and age it is almost impossible to hid any misdeeds or crime so people tend to steer away from it. We also shape our looks and personality to please others in our photos that we post across social media. Photography to me is a form of artistic expression passed down to us just like painting and story telling, just not as old as they are. Photography is a form of self expression or a way of telling a story. A photo captures a moment in time, and I believe it can also capture a piece of the soul, eternalizing it in a frozen form. Because of this an artists emotions can shine through it and speak to us. One of my favorite quotes that I think describes this well is "A picture can say a thousand words." That is what photography is to me. I am inspired by the world around me. I mainly find my inspiration in all the little part of the world. Such as a spiderweb or the clouds. I tend to focus more on nature then I do on any thing man made so those who inspire me tend to be artists that focus on the abstract or landscapes. However the people around me, such as my family, also inspire me. I love to capture them in photos because they are always so lively and amusing when we are all together. I am also inspired by artists who stepoutside the norm and break the rules. Such as Jerry Uelsmann. Uelsmann is a black and white photographer that makes abstract prints by combining negatives. His work is so breathtaking and seemless. It would be easyer to think that his work was made in photoshop because of how weemlessly everything blends. However the fact that everything is hand made is so much more inspiring, because it show how much time, energy, and thought went into every print. I was also inspired by Matthew Brandt. Brandt would photograph landscapes containing some body of water. He would then collect water from that spot and use it to develope his images of that area. Due to the impority of the water he made some very intriguing works of art. His idea was so out of the box it is inspiring. (Image on left is by Uelsmann and the image on the right is by Brandt)

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Marvin Heiferman and My Inspiration

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