Ingledew's article is a good introduction when starting a photography class, but I must say that rereading my notes on this reading now and afterwards rereading the article has given me an even deeper understanding of the text but also of photography in general, I feel like it is necessary to read some of the texts on our reading list twice, once right at the beginning of the course when you've never really thought much about photography before and then again once you start developing your project and have already seen different artists and different aspects and techniques of photography.
The author gives a very general, but perfectly clear and honest analysis of the art of photography.
He starts off by saying that it is great because it is accessible for everybody and thus everybody can do it in his own way, there are no rules for what you can and can't do, the possibilities are unlimited.
And thinking about it, this is something that I love most about photography. The possibility to be creative, without having to be super talented at drawing, writing, etc...
Personally, I've also been kind of a creative person and I always have my head full of ideas, but I could never quite unfold them, because I can't draw or paint or anything, and thus photography gives me the opportunity to show my creativity through the lens.
Ingledew doesn't only talk about the reasons photography has become so popular, but he also includes some theoretical knowledge explaining film-based or digital photography and going back in history to the first photograph ever taken and the famous daguerreotype. And I feel like these are the things that are particularly important when starting with photography, because he really explains the basics in a few words and thus makes it easier to understand. But what was most interesting for me, especially also for the way I see photography and also the way I think about my project, was definitely the beginning of the article and his various answers to the question why we like photographs.
For me, these passages from the article really sum up how we see photography and I feel like it is really difficult to choose a few quotes that I could focus on, because I can honestly not decide and would prefer just quoting the whole text. But as that would be a bit exaggerated I decide to pick out some of my absolute favorite quotes and try to explain why they have a special meaning to me.
'We live our lifes through photographs.' And it is true! It is through photographs that we kind of create our own biography. We take photographs at every milestone of our life (birthdays, journeys, marriage, graduation, etc...) and thus we kind of capture the moments that have made us who we are and I think that this is one of the main reasons why photography has become so precious and valuable to us nowadays. The good moments pass so quickly, and back in the boring everyday life it just feels good and relieving to sometimes take a little time-out by just looking at the picture of your graduation and remembering the feeling of endless relieve and pride that you felt in that very moment.
Another quote I thought was kind of important in Ingledew's text was: 'Photographs get at the essence of things. They have the power to evoke, inform and inspire.' I think these three words at the end 'evoke, inform and inspire' are golden. They describe everything that photography is and should be, and I always keep them in my mind. Especially now that I'm intensively working on my project, these three words are ubiquitous, because I feel like the point of a photographic essay is to tell the viewer a story and develop it, thus informing him about whatever topic you choose and inspiring him to make a change.
Reading:
John Ingledew - Photography Loading
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