The etymology of “photography” goes back to the Greeks, since this word was supposedly from phos, (genitive: phōtós) meaning “light”, and graphê meaning “drawing or writing”.
So, literally speaking, when we talk about photography we are talking about “drawing with light”: a concept that entails both executing technique and drawing deep and pure emotion.
Last but not least, always be adventurous and curious like the kid we were to explore the world with your creativity. The best pictures I took were the ones when I was playing with the environment, testing new ideas, laughing like a kid while shooting.
As a photographer, I had the opportunity to meet with many other fellow photographers, and to listen to their point of view about how to take best shots; most of the time, what I hear is them talking about a specific lens performance, a new filter quality, the next camera model. Other times the topics are related to a specific photo setup, and the entire discussion is focused on which technique, which rule was used, and so on.
In all of this, I always find a common missing part: the emotion.
When I think about photography, I see travel, I see discovery, I see unique places in the world that made the shot possible. The shot becomes an automatic extension for the emotion I am feeling, and as such an image should be able to convey emotions, colors, and why not, even the semblance of the smell if possible.
I know, I am more like a “romantic” photographer which is how we are referring to Italian culture. For me the idea is to draw the emotion for the viewer, to make him feel the wind or the Sahara desert on his face, breathe the strong colors of a Californian sunset, feel the cold of a glacier cave in Patagonia.
Of course, techniques and rules are important to compose a good picture as well. Some of the photographers know the technique but don’t have the eye for the pictures, and there are others who don’t know about techniques but still be able to spark the emotion from the viewers with their pictures. Face with those two, I was being taught to be the latter and I would still prefer to be the latter.
Now you know what’s photography for me, I will take you on my adventures with me with my next posts. Stay tuned!
