Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/06/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]You make some interesting points, but what differentiates what you refer to as the snapshot photographer who captures the decisive moment of his dog's bathroom habits from the great Stieglitz who took many pictures of Georgia O'Keefe's backside from many directions? It would be hard to make the point that he took those photographs (which would later grace the walls of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City) in the same spirit as his renowned documentary photograph "The Steerage". If the previously mentioned pet photographer happens to be talented as a photographer, who is not to say that it will not be part of a show of dog photographs (one appeared in the Museum of Modern Art in New York). In terms of your criticism of photographers not taking the medium seriously, you must remember that we can't all be on the front lines of the latest hotspot of the world to illuminate the great injustices and tragedies. If Capa's fate was to be one of the greats lost in war, so be it. It is a mistake to dismiss a person whose work in this world happens to be in a hospital (as in my case) or an office building simply because we cannot be in Eritrea or India. As some of the more intreresting theoretical criticisms of Ansel Adams' work suggest, rather than putting national monuments on a pedestal at the expense of our own meager surroundings, we should be more aware of the beauty in the world around us. If Mr. X sees beauty in his grandchildren let him photograph them and have fun doing so without feeling inadequate for taking pictures of them and not the heads of state. - ----Original Message----- >From: Chandos Michael Brown <cmbrow@mail.wm.edu> >If a person wants to spend 5K on an M6 and a Noctilux to take pictures of his >dog pissing against a tree or the first steps of his grandchild, I'm all >for it. I just don't particularly want to look at it, and I don't feel any >especial obligation to take that person seriously as a photographer, for >he--in this example--fails to take photography itself as serious medium for >contemplative self-expression,