Photography

While at a family reunion recently, I was asked why I always took pictures of landscapes and not that of people. There's a lot of money in wedding photography, for example. And yes, I'm sure the small, secluded town of Staunton, VA certainly has a market for it. That said, my answer was simple.

I do not take photographs of people, because when they look upon my photographs, they do it through the lens of their own insecurity. Especially in wedding photography, the patron commissions the photographer to make every blemish disappear, and fix every issue this person sees--whether it exists or not. (With this in mind, I think the exploitative use of Photoshop has completely blurred our sense of reality, beauty, while exacerbating our insecurities.) As a photographer, I refuse to take money in exchange for making one's insecurities disappear. That's what psychologists are for.

I take pictures of landscapes because a landscape will never tell me what is wrong with my photo of it. It has an understanding, that I will do my very best to show it off in the glory it deserves. I think the key here is that God created all that is around us, including myself, and therefore trusts my God-given talent to represent his creation accurately and respectfully--and He is satisfied with every outcome. I doubt a photographer will ever get such a response from a human being.