Photography

While there are unique features in painting, sculpting, or building, there is something slightly different when it comes to photography. Why would I say that? Think a little about it. How long might it take for an artist to paint on a canvas? Hours? Days? Weeks? How about sculpting? Or how designing a building? All these types of art require time. Time to focus on the topic. Time to organize one’s thoughts. Time to take a step back and come back later without the worry that the inspiration will change. But when it comes to photography, time can sometimes be a jerk. If you happen to miss that one moment, you’ve lost the opportunity. Perhaps the object has moved on. Perhaps the lighting has changed. Perhaps it’s just not your day. Sure, the newly bought cameras and other technology may compensate by allowing you to take multiple pictures in a short amount of time, but that doesn’t mean a foolproof plan. Sometimes it’s that one moment that you happened to capture on a small square screen will be your masterpiece. This idea was what drew me to do a little research on a few award winning photographs that have been submitted and chosen from a variety of places, ranging from the National Geographic to Sony’s annual photo competition. Take a look.

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The first photo is called “The World as Seen from the Outside.” What really caught my attention was the photo’s accurate portrayal of the lives of the modern day man and woman. Suit and tie. Coming back from work. Time restraint. Fast food. Isolation. Social media as life. Being from a family that places heavy importance to eating together, this picture shows a gloomy contrast to what I think of as happiness. Somehow, seeing this portrayal of life makes me feel pressured. Is dinner soon going to be defined as sitting alone at a fast food booth with a big mac, large French fries, and a medium sized drink? Is the only company going to be the phone in your hand or the music coming form your ear buds? Can that be considered a healthy lifestyle? A happy one?

The next photo is called “The Mask of Society.” Truthfully, I didn’t see any deeper meaning behind this photo. Instead, what drew me in was the mask and the lady next to it. While I do not know the details behind this photo, I imagine the photographer setting up the camera in front of the woman and taking shots as she prepares the mask for display. The darker more calm colors seemed to be the perfect fit for this type of setting. The woman with a slight frown and bright red lipstick seems to fit in with the settings perfectly as well. As for the mask, perhaps it means something important. And judging by the details and jewels that adorn it, this is no simple mask. There’s a high craftsmanship for it and an aura of elegance and coldness from it.

And the final photo attracted me because of the colors and, upon closer look, the subject matter. I loved how most of the picture is filled with the blue nets. It seems to swallow up the viewer. And the four workers are in the midst of this huge mountain, calmly doing their part of the work. Somehow, it just takes my breath away.

So, what do you think about these photos. Are there any photos that come into your mind that you would regard as breathtaking, meaningful, or just plain funny?

2 thoughts on “Photography

  1. Melanie Marie Ramirez

    My best friend is a photographer, and whenever I see the photos she has taken she always leaves me with an “ahh” reaction. Personally, I have tried so many times to take a photograph of something or someone that could in effect leave someone with the same reaction my best friends always leaves me with, but I have never been able to (not even once) to master this form of art. I think that photography is a very unique and difficult form of art, since you pretty much have to try to capture something through a lens in a manner that will impress others “personal lenses.” For example, out of all of three photographs you provided the one that attracted me the most is the third one. From this photography whats makes me want to look at it is the vibrant colors and the combination between the strips of blue in the water and the hats of the people, also this same combination makes me wonder what the people might of been doing when this photograph was taken, or if this photograph was Photoshopped at all. Even though this is what attracted me to the photograph, chances are that the photographer had something completely different in mind and that others have other thoughts of this specific photograph. This essence that photography has of making so many people see different things out of the same picture is what attracts me towards this form of art.

  2. Eric Hodge

    This is a really interesting perspective on photography! I follow National Geographic on Instagram and occasionally they talk about what goes into taking the perfect shot. One such stories I remember involved a weeks long trek on foot in the mountain just to take a picture of a camp below. Although the picture itself only took a moment to take but the setup and being in the right place at the right time may take a lifetime.

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