My "why"

“Musicians must make music, artists must paint, poets must write if they are ultimately to be at peace with themselves. What humans can be, they must be.” – Abraham Maslow

I struggled with my photography during the past few weeks. A couple of weeks ago, I fell into the river while photographing with my beloved Fuji camera at one of the local nature trails. Luckily, after I gave the camera and lens a good wipe off, both items survived the submersion in the water without suffering any damage. Not long after the accident in the field, there was some damage to my large format Epson printer’s print head, hence it couldn’t print without missing nozzles. Considering the printer’s massive size and weight, it was not an equipment one can easily get it fixed nor replaced. It was fortunate the manufacturer was able to arrange an in-house service call and the print head was replaced. The printer was up and running again after a week of being idled. Such mishaps to my camera equipment were by no means isolated events. Many similar incidences happened over the years. Despite all the challenges, never once did I want to give up on photography? For someone who is amateur, I find myself frequently asking this question “why bother?”

Why do we do it? I think we all ask ourselves this question from time to time. I photograph because I see. Photography is the universal language that speaks to the heart. We, as photographers are the ones who sort out all the chaos of the world into images that bring clarity to our chaotic life. We are the witnesses who can distill the mayhem and beauty that surrounds us. We hold the power to call attention to the things we easily miss in our everyday lives. We bring attention to events and people at a great distance when there is no easy access. When we direct our eyes and hearts with honesty, we know what we see matters.

"Taking flight/ Grounded"

I also feel an image is a poem about time. Images keep memories of loved ones alive, record a moment in history for future generations, be a witness to tragedy or joy. I have been around many photographers who will tell you how much their obsession with photography is almost like a disease, a condition that drives them to tell their stories at any cost, suffer hardships, isolate themselves and take extraordinary risks, all in an effort to capture and convey what they are passionate about.

Photography speaks in unspeakable ways. The power of this visual language transcends barriers. It holds the power to inform and move audiences worldwide without the need for a shared spoken language. A beautiful image, a successful narrative is universally understood. Your audience can smile, laugh, or fell silent at a moment’s notice without a word being uttered.

Photography is light. That light is often shined into the darkest and most unexpected places by photographers who believe in the medium. The photographers I most admire go out into the world with a sense of wonder, challenging our assumption, making us see the world afresh, for better or worse. They are willing to work with repeated themes and subjects to uncover those rare moments that provoke through their insightful perspectives or visual mastery.

I believe this art, this madness, this compulsion to convey something extraordinary will not die, it will change and evolve but it is human nature to want to learn and to understand how magnificent our world is. This is the reason I am willing to put in the time and effort to fight through all the struggles. This is a medium that allows me to show “this is my way of seeing”.