…’The Photographer’s Eye.’
I borrowed this particular book from the library without knowing too much about it. What a pleasant surprise. The book was published in 1966 and thoughtfully written by John Szarkowski. He has chosen to describe five facets of photography- The Thing Itself, The Detail, The Frame, Time, and Vantage Point. All these influence photographers consciously or not. There are wonderful images that span a century to illustrate each of these aspects.
The book proved to be so inspiring that I decided to use it as a framework with selected quotes and my own photographs as examples. Take a look-
Daybreak © 2013
1. The Thing Itself
“…More convincingly than any other kind of picture, a photograph evokes the tangible presence of reality. It’s most fundamental use and its broadest acceptance has been as a substitute for the subject itself- a simpler, more permanent, more clearly visible version of the plain fact…”
Church Shoes, © 2012
Grandpa’s Tractor, North Carolina, © 2011
2. The Detail
“…From the reality before him, he (the photographer) could only choose that part that seemed relevant and consistent, and that would fill his plate. If he could not show the battle, explain its purpose and its strategy, or distinguish its heroes from its villains, he could show what was too ordinary to paint...”
“…Intuitively, he sought and found the significant detail…”
Portrait of E.B. © 2013
Animal’s Death, © 2012
3. The Frame
“To quote out of context is the essence of the photographer’s craft. His central problem is a simple one: what shall he include, what shall he reject? The line of decision between in and out is the picture’s edge. While the draughtsman starts with the middle of the sheet, the photographer starts with the frame…”
Memorial Day, © 2010
Instrument Cases © 2012
Time
“…Photographers found an inexhaustible subject in the isolation of a single segment of time…”
Coffee Break, © 2011
Frozen Ice Pattern, © 2013
Vantage Point
“…If the photographer could not move his subject, he could move his camera. To see the subject clearly- often to see it at all- he had to abandon a normal vantage point…”
Alphabet Series- Letter A, © 2013
Tree Roots, © 2012
