Seeing |
|
From the moment we first open our eyes, we are subjected to a myriad of images that inform us of the world about. We see.... and through seeing, we become who we are. Seeing impresses on our mind and implants on our soul perceptions that are uniquely our own. No one sees the same even when viewing the same. Focus and attention are derived from within and thus each of us shapes our understanding of what is seemingly without dispute. Is it the forest not the trees, or is it the trees but not the forest, or is it something altogether different? Photography is a solitary pursuit even when embedded amongst a sea of photographers. Seeing... is a highly individualist pursuit. A photographer captures images but it is that distinctive configuration of what he sees when he presses the shutter that determines the picture he captures. A photographer sees what others do not. An image becomes a photographic essay of a moment frozen in time. Every photograph is an invitation....An invitation to share in the photographer’s experience of a moment. An invitation to see something differently or to see something for the first time. Photography is an alliance between photographer and subject, but an equally and powerful collaboration between photographer, subject and viewer, because the viewer ultimately determines the merit or appeal of the photograph. Seeing... has no moralist value although certainly one could be construed. Seeing... is not about history, or rights or wrongs, there is no attempt to define a greater understanding of the human condition. Rather it really is about that something within a photographer that enables him to visualise a truth best expressed by photography. It is not a measure of photographing how complicated that truth may be. Ironically, photographic complexities are merely techniques and manipulations; photographic simplicity requires imagination, and imagination is the springboard to inspiration. Seeing... seeks to explore the beauty of simple things: ordinary moments; a silent awareness , a perception of within. It is predicated on the notion that harmony, symmetry and simplicity are at the core of beauty and the essence of photography. Millard Arnold |