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Quote by Thomas Merton

“... Nothing resembles reality less than the photograph. Nothing resembles substance less than its shadow. To convey the meaning of something substantial you have to use not a shadow but a sign, not the limitation but the image. The image is a new and different reality, and of course it does not convey an impression of some object, but the mind of the subject; and that is something else again.”

Author

Thomas Merton

Thomas Merton (January 31, 1915 - December 10, 1968) was an American writer, poet, social critic, and mystic. His works covered a wide range of topics including philosophy, religion, and social justice, and were highly appreciated by readers. more

“The camera does not know what it takes; it captures materials with which you reconstruct, not so much what you saw as what you thought you saw. Hence the best photography is aware, mindful, of illusion and uses illusion, permitting and encouraging it - especially unconscious and powerful illusions that are not usually admitted on the scene.”

Knows Doe Use Powerful Saws Materials Scene Photography Illusion Cameras Unconscious Capture

Book:The Asian Journal of Thomas Merton

Source: The Asian Journal of Thomas Merton

“You tell me these two were my parents, so now I know but it's a memory that you've given me. I'll remember the photo from now on, but not them.”

Knows Two Remember Given Parent Memories

Author:Umberto Eco

“The photograph [of Che Guevara], for a civilization now accustomed to thinking in images, was not the description of a single event... it was an argument.”

Thinking Events Civilization Argument Photograph Description Accustomed

Author:Umberto Eco

“If photography is to be likened to perception, this is not because the former is a natural process but because the latter is also coded.”

Ifs Process Natural Perception Photography Former Latter