quote of the week, feb 26th, 2005

Andy

last week's quote of the week thread is here

this week's quote is by diane arbus.

I always thought of photography as a naughty thing to do -- that was one of my favorite things about it, and when I first did it, I felt very perverse. -Diane Arbus, "On Photography" by Susan Sontag.

you can find some of diane arbus' work here and here

so, how do you feel when you're taking photographs? perverse, as diane arbus says she feels, or do you feel some other way?

discuss.

wxwax

Empowered and emboldened. Usually energized beyond my normal level with creative drive. Impatient yet willing to hold a spot for an hour to get a shot.

As with my work, when I'm shooting I often feel bolder than when I'm not. It's as though my mission overrules my caution and normal observance of rules. I enjoy that feeling.

I still get too excited when I shoot. I don't slow my mind down enough to think the problem through. As a result, I make mistakes that are immediately obvious to me right after I leave a location, long before I even look at the shots.

I love being creative, and photography most definitely satisfies that craving.

Khaos

I feel excited. I'm capturing something that may show more than the total of what was happening or show nothing at all. I can't wait to see what I did. It's so much fun to see something interesting on the fly and trying to capture it.

gus

The boy stood on the burning deck
A pocket full of crackers
crap..sorry, wrong forum.

gregneil

I'm always nervous, afraid I'm going to be "caught". I always feel like everyone around me is suspicious of me and my motives. Why do I care? Hmm... don't know. But when I finally get going and ignore everyone around me, I usually lose myself completely in the process of taking pictures and time seems to not exist anymore until at some point I snap out of it, look at my watch, and wonder what city I'm in.

Then I go to Taco Bell.

Nir

andy wrote:

I always thought of photography as a naughty thing to do -- that was one of my favorite things about it, and when I first did it, I felt very perverse. -Diane Arbus, "On Photography" by Susan Sontag.

........ ......... .......

ginger_55

I thought it was like giving birth.

g

Andy

ginger_55 wrote:

I thought it was like giving birth.

g

well, could you elaborate? painful? joyous? fearful? all of the above?

ginger_55

andy wrote:

well, could you elaborate? painful? joyous? fearful? all of the above?

:lol4 I thought everyone knew that giving birth is full of joy. As it would relate to photography. I wasn't afraid, I was annoyed that my husband had spent that much money on a huge enlarger with an especially good lens, the cameras, the whole bit. So I ignored it.

One evening, I thought what the heck, so my then husband showed me how to put the film in the thing, etc. I did that, took the piece of paper out, shined a light on the paper that went through the negative.

Then a put the paper in a tray with smelly clear liquid, and a picture came forth, as I watched. I did another and another and another..........and I didn't quit.

It was like giving birth in that I was creating a totally new thing, one that only I could do. (With my negatives)

A few months later, I was developing pictures, while in labor with my fourth and last child, and I was developing pictures. At a time I deemed appropriate I went to the hospital, had the child, or the subject of many more photographs: both the child and the photographs were created by me.

I think that my initial experience with photography, the black and white kind, was so obviously like giving birth in the creative sense.

Maybe that analogy isn't as obvious with digital photography. I was excited about digital photography from the beginning. As an obvious extension, or direction, for this creative experience and endeavor, in a new technical age.

ginger (giving birth and photography)