submitted by Tammy Cobb – Charleston, South Carolina Photographer – Lifestyle portrait artist for Summerville, Charleston, North Charleston, Isle of Palms Beach
Wow! I got lost in this book! It was packed full of thought-provoking quotes by famous photographers and insights into the heart of a photographer.
I had been eyeing this book for over a year now and finally decided to order it from Amazon this past month. My only regret is that I did not purchase it when I first saw it. I think it will be one of my all-time favorite books.
If you’re looking for a book to teach you technical skill or even discuss it for that matter, this is not the book. Jan Phillips speaks to the heart of a photographer. The thoughts and what motivates us as photographers were captured beautifully by her. I felt as if my heart and thoughts finally had a voice.
I have always felt that our work as photographers told just as much about us as it did our subjects. She said this so perfectly with this quote:
“Over time, if we shoot authentically, follow the leanings of our heart, our body of work will become a silent testimony to who we are and what we care about. Our photographs will speak with a voice of their own, uttering our essence to all who can hear. “
She also goes on to say….
“When I look into a a mirror, I see my face, my body, the form of my being. When I look into my images, it is my soul that I find reflected, parts of myself that cannot be revealed in language. I could tell you about myself in puffed-up words, exaggerating my abilities, emphasizing my strengths, leaving out my flaws and failings, and you would walk away with a certain notion about who I am. If, instead, I handed you a box of my photographs and said, G?This is the essence of who I am,G? your understanding of me would be truer, undistorted by language and interpretation. My photographs area direct line to my inner world. They are the shortest distance between my soul and yours. Even more important, my photographs are a direct line between my soul and me. As much as an image speaks of the things seen, it speaks also of the person who photographs it. “
I also love how she talks about photography as a healing heart. I’ve been lost in the moment that she describes . . . nothing else seems to exist. It is a place that I can go where there are no worries of anything past or present….just the moment.
“We heal ourselves in the act of photographing by being full present to the moment at hand. When we stand on the edge of that which is, we are released from the yoke of what has been, detached from the fear of what might be. There is only the moment, the light, the matter of our vision. All is peace in the eternal now.”
She also goes on to say….
“The photos that grip us, call us back to themselves over and over – as do oneG??s favorite poems or plays or concertos – those photos renew us, heal us, without a doubt.”
Chapter 1 – Through the Eyes of a Child
Chapter 2 – Seeing Our Way Clear
Chapter 3 – Shifting the Focus
Chapter 4 – Looking Like No Other
Chapter 5 – Portrait of a Soul
Chapter 6 – Speaking Our Peace
Chapter 7 – Mindful Seeing, Mindful Being
Chapter 8 – New Images for a New WorldChapter 9 – Life Seeking Life
Chapter 10 – God Is at Eye Level
Chapter 11 – The Thin Curved Line
Chapter 12 – The Healing Nature of Creativity
Chapter 13 – Looking for the Joy of It
Chapter 14 – Photographing the Rituals of Our Lives
Chapter 15 – Through the Lens and Beyond
Chapter 16 – Photo Synthesis: Life from Light
Eventually I discovered for myself the utterly simple prescription for creativity: be intensely yourself. Don’t try to be outstanding; don’t try to be a success; don’t try to do pictures for others to look at–just please yourself. – Ralph Steiner
Thanks for a great review!