Essay Component: Photography

From the Beginning:
Photography has influenced society since the early 1800's. From the creation of the digital camera in the 1900's, society has gained an even larger interest in the capabilities that the camera offers more now than ever before with a film-based camera.

Historically we are able to connect with faces and events that were documented from behind a camera. That visual aspect that is available to us is monumental. “Photography is a social history that is now beginning to be recognized for its importance to our understanding of the past, and for the rich rewards it offers to inquiring minds.”(Cameron&Becker PG 11) It allows us to relate to our past and establish a greater connection and passion to what has come before us. It’s all about not forgetting where we come from. Photographs imprint those memories in us forever.

The advancement in photography has sky rocketed in the last 20 years. Not only do the available settings and lens options set photography on a new playing field, but the new programs for editing, like Photoshop have been invented that allow photographers to professionalize their photographs with a click of a mouse.

Online offers:
The Internet is now where society grasps their information. Even online Universities have become a popular way to achieve education, and earn a degree. Photography is a very hands on, a day-to-day trial and error experience. With the help of the Internet and YouTube tutorials about different aspects of photography such as; depth of field, shutter speed and aperture, and lighting techniques, we are able to obtain insight to better our skills as photographers.

Getting to know you:
I have to comment on how relevant photography is when discussing social networking. There is the famous saying, "A picture is worth a thousand words." One picture can describe a personality, an emotion, and a person’s whole life in one snap shot. With an online profile there is a limitation of writing space, and long posts of information can bore an audience within seconds anyway. Photographs are attentions grabbers, and hold an audience especially if the photographer has taken the time to be creative and original with their work.

Personal touch:
Personally photography is a huge outlet of creativity and insight about our world and the people in it. With that I love the allowance photography gives me to express my thoughts and feelings through a lens. There is a wide range of genres of photography to choose from. Because of that large range I never feel limited when I get behind my camera. Though there are specific genres and categorical standards to photography, there is never a photograph that doesn’t fit in one of them. A photograph can be of anything, capturing something like a simple rock to an entire mountainside. The photographer gets to decide what is important and substantial to them, and them only. Freedom is always present in photography. It’s your time, your creativity, and your hobby to document life as you see it. Once you are behind the camera the world becomes yours.