“I don't like the discussions about whether photography is an art. Even though I think that if it would be just a craft I would not have stayed with it all my life.” IfsThinkingArtWould BePhotographyCraftsDiscussion Author:Josef Sudek
“Literature especially has an interesting relationship to photography - to observation, to description, to fiction: taking something that you see and elaborating, jamming, and I think, staging.... taking that moment of observation and letting it go, giving it some wings, following it, rather than nailing it. You're riffing off of reality.” ThinkingGivingMomentsRealityLiteratureInterestingFictionPhotographyWingsFollowingObservationDescriptionThat MomentLet It GoStaging Author:Larry Sultan
“I am suspicious and disillusioned about the uses and misuses of photography in the art world, the press, and the world of entertainment. And to make things more complicated, I don't think that the general public is well educated regarding images. Generally we are taught how to read, but we are not taught how to look.” ThinkingWorldWellsLooksArtUseTaughtPhotographyPressesEntertainmentComplicatedEducatedSuspiciousArt WorldMisuseGeneral PublicDisillusionedWell Educated Author:Alfredo Jaar
“Modernism in a way, early modernism, for instance, in pictures, was turning against perspective and Europe. And all early modernism is actually from out of Europe, when you think of cubism is African, is looking at Africa, Matisse is looking at the arabesque, Oceania. Europe was the optical projection that had become photography, that had become film, that became television and it conquered the world.” ThinkingWorldWayFilmTelevisionPerspectivePhotographyEuropeInstanceProjectionModernismCubismMatisseOceania Author:David Hockney
“I think probably something big can be done with cameras, I'm not saying, er, I'm saying chemical photography's finished, that means you can't have a Cartier Bresson again, you need never believe pictures.” ThinkingNeedsBelieveMeanDoneBigsPhotographyCamerasFinishedChemicalsCartier Author:David Hockney
“I think what it was with the war photography was the concerned eye, the desire to document these situations to show the world the horrors of war. It inspired me to document prostitution; inspired me to document homelessness in America. We are the richest country in the world, yet we have people suffering, so it helped me to look at things in that manner.” PeopleThinkingWorldLooksWarCountryShowsEyeAmericaDesireSufferingSituationHorrorPhotographyConcernedInspiredDocumentsHomelessnessProstitutionHorror Of War Author:Jamel Shabazz
“I think that's what the war photography did for me. It showed me the human side of people and how certain circumstances can change people's lives.” PeopleThinkingHumansWarCertainSidesCircumstancesPhotography Author:Jamel Shabazz
“I think that photography has allowed me to have a voice. I used to stutter, and once I overcame that struggle, it felt good to tell people they were beautiful and special.” PeopleThinkingBeautifulUsedFeltVoiceStruggleSpecialPhotography Author:Jamel Shabazz
“I like to think that the music is a mixture of personal experiences mixed with photography and movies.” ThinkingPhotographyMusic IsMixturesPersonal Experiences Author:Sune Rose Wagner
“If you cannot think of anything to say that is useful or enlightening about your images, then don't say anything. There are plenty of other people who would love to put words in your mouth.” PeopleIfsThinkingPhotographyMouthsPlentySay AnythingEnlightening Author:Bill Jay
“But there are times when thinking is misplaced, like when taking photographs. You cannot think your way to making photographs; you can photograph your way to clearer thinking.” ThinkingWayPhotographyPhotographMisplaced Author:Bill Jay
“Words of wisdom for every photographer: 'Thinking is more interesting than knowing, but less interesting than looking'. So said Goethe.” ThinkingSaidInterestingKnowingWords Of WisdomPhotographyPhotographer Author:Bill Jay
“When you can't think of anything else, photograph graffiti, nudes, or plants.” ThinkingPhotographyPlantPhotographGraffiti Author:Bill Jay
“Think clearly, act sensibly, commit yourself to caring and work hard in order to discover joy. Then give the images back to the world from which they were taken.” ThinkingWorldGivingHardJoyOrderTakenHard WorkPhotographyPhotographerCaringCommit Author:Bill Jay
“I think I'm no different to my friends who are doctors or businessmen or architects - we all started watching films of the golden age together. But whether I'm making films or writing poetry or doing photography, it's very much rooted in my sense of unease. And that's really where everything goes back to.” ThinkingWritingDifferentAgeTogetherFilmPhotographyMy FriendsDoctorsGoldenArchitectRootedBusinessmanGolden AgeWriting Poetry Author:Abbas Kiarostami
“We've witnessed so many revolutions in our society. Think of transportation, photography, or communications. Things once unimaginable have become seemingly impossible to live without.” ThinkingImpossibleCommunicationRevolutionPhotographyOur SocietyTransportationUnimaginable Author:Wayne Pacelle
“There are people who like photography; there are people who are worrying about what's going to happen with the dollar. They want to get anything that seems hard. I don't know, but I think it's got to do with economics. Now and then you get somebody who buys a picture because he likes it.” PeopleThinkingKnowsWantHardSeemsHappensWorryPhotographyEconomicsDollarsLikesNow And Then Author:Garry Winogrand
“[Photography is ] likewise even French impressionists. So the Sculls bought pop. It was politics, and they moved with it. And I think that could be happening, to some degree, with photography, too. It doesn't cost as much to do it, either.” ThinkingCostDegreesPhotographyHappeningsMovedPopsImpressionists Author:Garry Winogrand
“It's shot by Ben Rayner who I think is very talented at doing portrait photography as well as fashion photography. His images never look like a model. You know, it doesn't look like a faceless model just wearing whatever. There's always personality that comes through. That was quite important for me to capture.” ThinkingKnowsWellsLooksImportantFashionPersonalityPhotographyModelsShotsCapturePortraitsFacelessFashion PhotographyPortrait Photography Author:Alexa Chung
“I think that it's workshops, honestly, that have kept me keen about photography, and about my photography. My career as a workshop photographer came while I was at the Geographic in the late 70's, and has continued consistently since then.” ThinkingCareersLatePhotographyPhotographerHonestlyConsistentlyWorkshops Author:Sam Abell
“The thing with my workshops is, photography is a thoughtful process. In an atmosphere of fast photography, and generally thoughtless, quick, automatic photography, I think that there is an interest in the slowed down, thoughtful approach.” ThinkingProcessInterestApproachPhotographyAtmosphereThoughtfulWorkshops Author:Sam Abell
“Look and think before opening the shutter. The heart and mind are the true lens of the camera.” ThinkingInspirationalMindLooksHeartPhotographyCamerasPhotographerPhotographOpeningHeart And MindLensesPhotography By PhotographersInspirational PhotographyShuttersGreat PhotographyCamera And PhotographyInspiring PhotographyGood PhotographyCamera LensesNikon Author:Yousuf Karsh
“I started thinking of digital imaging, not photography, in 1994 as it seemed the most appropriate way to deal with ideas of biotechnology and advertising. My practice is conceptual.” ThinkingWayIdeasDealsPracticePhotographyAdvertisingAppropriateDigitalBiotechnologyImaging Author:Patricia Piccinini
“I use whatever media I think will best express my ideas and therefore I don't have a lot invested in the idea of photography specifically. I am more interested in Art.” ThinkingArtIdeasUseMediaPhotography Author:Patricia Piccinini
“Somebody once said to me that photography and writing don't get respect because people think that they can do it, too.” PeopleThinkingWritingSaidCan DoPhotography Author:Danielle Steel
“I think that cinema and television have nothing in common. There is a breaking point between photography and cinema on the one hand and television and virtual reality on the other hand.” ThinkingHandsRealityCommonTelevisionPhotographyCinemaVirtual RealityPoint Break Author:Paul Virilio
“I do not think there is any question of photography being an art form!” ThinkingArtFormPhotography Author:Ansel Adams
“There still is some opposition to it in some museums and art schools, but I think photography has really grown into a mature art form.” ThinkingArtStillsSchoolFormPhotographyOppositionMatureMuseumsArt School Author:Ansel Adams
“I think photography is being recognized and collected. Its values have certainly gone up and continue to go up.” ThinkingValuesGonePhotography Author:Ansel Adams
“Basically, I thought for a very long time that making music and art projects, that that was just something that I did, and real life was separate. And I'm starting to realize that the things that I do, making music and art and photography and all that, it's not just something that I do. It's who I am. So I don't think I'll ever be able to stop. It's like that curse that you live with, this thing that you love but you also hate it at the same time. It brings you a lot of joy but also a lot of heartbreak.” ThinkingLongArtRealAbleJoyHateRealizingProjectsPhotographyLong TimeStartingReal LifeWho I AmCurseArt Projects Author:Frank Iero
“I prefer to think of photography as a never ending journey with infinite possibilities. I love to return to places to re photograph. Nothing is ever the same. The options are endless.” ThinkingJourneyPossibilityReturnPhotographyInfinitePhotographEndlessNever EndingInfinite Possibilities Author:Michael Kenna
“I think of myself as being an ethical man, but I don't try to teach ethics. I have no message. I know little about contemporary life. I don't read a newspaper. I dislike politics and politicians. I belong to no party whatever. My private life is a private life. I try to avoid photography and publicity.” ThinkingMenTryingPartyTeachPoliticianPhotographyEthicsEthicalDislike Author:Jorge Luis Borges
“I want the look of a movie to be secondary. I really want people to be engaged in the story and the characters and not think about a style or think about me or think about the director of photography and what a great job he's doing. I never feel like that should be there.” PeopleThinkingCharacterStylePhotographyGreat Job Author:Nicole Holofcener
“I think that's what really separates me in the world of fashion is I have a real understanding of actual clothes and how they work and how they should fit and a reasonably good artistic version of photography that kind of captures that. I think that was really kind of the best combination.” ThinkingWorldKindRealUnderstandingFashionFitPhotographyArtisticGood ArtGood Artist Author:Scott Schuman
“That's one of the troubles of photography; the implication that what you have in that photograph is the way it is, and of course a year later that's not the way it is. Life moves on and the picture stays. That can be a wonderful idea to be a part of history and on the other hand, you think pictures have a life that they don't have.” ThinkingMovingWonderfulTroublePhotographyPhotograph Author:Eugene Richards
“When I was starting out, conceptual photography had become something that had to be amateur - like, that had to be black-and-white, or photocopied, or really not an object in order to be taken seriously. It had to work against technical mastery, and so on. So I think that my work is full of obstacles in the sense that it does look highly familiar and accessible. It does look like it's already "solved at first sight." It does look like it's part of a larger industry.” ThinkingTakenPhotographyObstaclesFamiliar Author:Elad Lassry
“I think there's a general confusion that my work is about types of photography. But really that's just a tool to introduce some questions I have about seeing. What happens when all of these conditions and structures and histories and cultures and tools you have around you begin to fail? On the one hand there is an engagement with histories and cultures, and on the other, there is this very lonesome space of actually coming to terms with seeing.” ThinkingCultureTermFailingPhotographyConfusionIntroducing Author:Elad Lassry
“I left film because I felt that photography was my art. It was something I could do on my own, whereas film was so collaborative. I thought as a photographer I could make something that was artistic and that was mine, and I liked that. And it wasn't until I got back into film and I have very small crews and I could do very tiny filmmaking that wasn't 100 people that I still felt that I was making something artistic as a filmmaker. So, you know, I'm an artist, and whether it's photography or film, I want my voice to be there and I think my voice is very strong in this film.” PeopleThinkingArtFilmArtistStrongPhotographyPhotographerArtisticFilmmakerVery StrongFilmmaking Author:Timothy Greenfield-Sanders
“For me being able to see all different places where I've skied and cherish them, and be able to see them - really see them - is something that I'm passionate about. I'm into photography, so I really enjoy taking photos of all the places that I've gone. I think that's the coolest part about being an Olympic sportsman, I get to travel around and see the world for free, technically. And get to see different cultures, and all the different people that I've met along the way - it's a pretty awesome job.” PeopleThinkingWorldDifferentCultureEnjoyPhotographyPassionateCherishDifferent PlaceDifferent Cultures Author:Resi Stiegler
“I think creating the clothes is about creating historical images - and that's about more than fashion. It is about the fashion, the photography, what you are doing in the moment. It's what we call in French rechercher, or the search for that thing. So even though fashion is not scientific, I think being a designer is somewhat like being a scientist.” ThinkingMomentsFashionPhotographyScientistHistoricalDesigner Author:Nicolas Ghesquiere
“I knew I liked art. I knew I liked photography. I remember seeing photos of Linda Evangelista in Italian Vogue as a teenager, and at the time I didn't know who she was. There were two photos - one shot by Fabrizio Ferri and another one by Steven Meisel. I didn't know who any of those people were. I think it was the first summer I was modeling, I saw these magazines sitting out and looked at them. I remember thinking, These are the kind of images I want to make.” PeopleThinkingKindArtRememberSummerPhotographyTeenagerItalianModelingVogue Author:Amber Valletta
“I think photography is so hard. To be working in video and photography the past 20 years - because I was doing it in high school - you're dealing with mediums that change culture. The way they are distributed, disseminated - it's changed so dramatically. One of the things I always like to do is look at the structure of something and detach myself from the structure and figure out how to slightly alter it. So if the structure itself is constantly liquidated, it just really is difficult for me to really even know what to think of Instagram.” ThinkingSchoolPastCultureDifficultChangedPhotographyHigh School Author:Slater Bradley
“Photography really is all about lines, and so is clothing. I worked for Oberto Gili for a couple of years after I was at ICP; we worked in fashion, travel, interior design, everything. I was inspired by his styling choices within fashion photography, and I think those experiences helped steer me towards fashion design. I love photography as a medium, so I think I will always take inspiration from it.” ThinkingInspirationChoicesFashionDesignCouplePhotographyInspired Author:Minnie Mortimer
“I like the drawings. And as a photography fan myself, I would look at Helmut Newton or Irving Penn and like to see the initial notes or drawings, to see where the ideas grew from. Also my sketches are key to my work because I came to realise early on that by doing drawings, I could formulate a plan of what I was thinking of - I could take control and direct the work.” ThinkingPhotographyDirectRealisingNewton Author:Miles Aldridge
“Twitter scares me. I think it's so amazing, like the internet in general, because of the connection that it gives people. But the concept that one 140-word post can change someone's life . . . that scares me. You can literally ruin someone's life with one tweet. So I only do Instagram. I love photography . . . and interacting with the fans. I do love hearing from them. I try to answer questions if I can.” PeopleThinkingGivingTryingInternetPhotographyScareTweet Author:Elisabeth Moss
“The magazine business is dying. It's a hard time for publishing. It does seem that everyone is much more opinionated now. I think there's probably more room for making opinionated illustrations. There was a time when Time magazine and Newsweek would have a realistic painted cover. A friend of mine used to do a lot of those paintings and he was told by the art director at one point, we are switching to photography. It seems that if someone saw a painting on a cover, it took a while to do, it must be old news. Photography became more immediate.” ThinkingArtDyingPaintingPhotographyHard TimesRealisticPublishingTime Magazine Author:Barry Blitt
“I didn't do so well in the academic world, so I think the only way I could express myself was through visual art - anything I could get my hands on, whether it was glassblowing, sculpture, painting, or photography. I always wanted to be a painter. Or a farmer.” ThinkingWorldArtPaintingPhotographyPainterFarmersAcademicVisual Art Author:Nicole Kidman
“The world of photography is very self-aware. Everybody is always looking around. So it's quite difficult to stand up with a megaphone and declare, "This is what I think." As a reasonably shy person, I found it difficult to do that.” ThinkingWorldDifficultPhotographyShy Author:Stuart Franklin
“Press information is serious information, but press information is also manipulated by people who want you to think that this and that happened. So it's the old thing that you still cannot trust photography at all or you have to know who is distributing the photograph. In terms of cell phone photography, I think nobody cares about a photograph anymore because they're taking so many pictures just for fun.” PeopleThinkingCareFunTermSeriousPhotographyPhotographCell PhoneNobody Cares Author:Thomas Ruff
“If you look at photographers who say, "I hate digital photography," they all use Photoshop, even if it's to make the sky just a little more blue than it was. Manipulation is very discrete and because it's so discrete nobody cares about it anymore. People accept manipulated photographs, I think.” PeopleThinkingCareHateAcceptingPhotographyI HatePhotographerPhotographManipulationNobody Cares Author:Thomas Ruff