Photographs serve many functions in our daily life. It's not only a way for us to express ourselves artistically, but also a way to document history, accurately depict objects/people, and create memory for people.
A world without photographs is not purely hypothetical.
On a historical level, our image of Jesus (a White person with beard and long hair) is clearly shaped by works by artists who had never seen Jesus. Jesus has even been depicted as an Ethiopian or a Chinese. Without photographs, the image of a person varied depending on one's cultural background and subjective experience.
On a scientific level, photography can only deal with physical objects that reflect light, and thus, entities that absorb light (e.g.,black holes or dark matters) can not be photographed. On one hand, people are doubtful about the existence of such things. On the other, people have imagined crazy things about these entities. Thus, a world without photographs would, at least in some ways, create chaos.
On an artistic level, for people like me, who can't really draw but still would like to express in an artistic way, creating arts would be a much harder thing to do in a world without photographs.
#2: What does the word "photograph" mean to you?
It means memory to me. I have really bad memory, and I can hardly remember anything. A lot of times I rely on photographs to remember what my childhood, my teenage time, and my college life is like.
#3 “Photography deals exquisitely with appearances, but nothing is what it appears to be.”~Duane Michals. Write a brief reaction to this quote. Is this quote applicable to your experience with photography? What does it mean to you? Do you agree with the idea presented or disagree?
I think everything is our perception, and "nothing is what it appears to be." Rather, everything is what we perceive it to be. Although photography deals exquisitely with appearances, the way a photographer takes a photo is influenced by the photographer's own perception. Moreover, our perception is very much influenced by how we personally experience the world and our past experiences. Therefore, I think every photo is an expression of ourselves.
#4 “If I could tell the story in words, I wouldn't need to lug around a camera.” ~Lewis Hine.
Write a brief reaction to this quote. Is this quote applicable to your experience with photography? What does it mean to you? Do you agree with the idea presented or disagree? Describe situations when photographic images reveal “the story” (as compared to words). Describe situations when words reveal “the story” (as compared to images).
I think it depends on the story itself. I can think of scenarios in which photos may be a better way to reveal the story and scenarios in which words may be a better medium.
Situations when photography reveals the story: When I see this quote, I immediately recalled this picture (as I think the image is somewhat disturbing, I will not post the image itself onto the blog). It depicts a starving child in the foreground, and a lurking vulture in the background. The image really hit me, and I don't think words would have the same impact.
However, in certain times, words can reveal the story more effectively. For example, works describing the future may leave some details for readers to imagine. In these cases, a photograph may limit readers' imagination.
