Photography is more than just taking pictures

BY Nova Blanco-Rico

Photography is essentially the art of taking photos, but it is so much more than that. It allows for someone to capture a moment in time either as a cherished memory or a piece of art. Everyone is capable of taking amazing photos, because now everyone has a camera right in their grasp.

The type of photography that we have today with surreal detail and vivid colors, used to be only black and white.

The first known photo was taken by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in the mid 1820s. It was created by using a pinhole image onto a pewter plate, which took days to complete the image. It was eventually introduced to the public in 1839. From that time, photography has changed so much, from having to take photos using film to using just digital. Cameras can now process light much better to give the best picture one can get on a subject.

Now, all someone needs is a phone to take pictures, no one really needs to buy a $1,000 camera, but cameras are the best if one wants to enter a field involving photography.

Majors, like journalism or graphic design, involve photography because “pictures are worth a thousand words.” Photos can express so much about the photographer and what is being shot. For example, a picture taken of a waterfall and a person staring at it tells a story that the artist wants you to figure out, while a photo of only the waterfall is the artist presenting nature and its beauty. Those are just two perspectives of one thing. More photographers can bring other views.

For journalism, photos are usually used to help give a little more context to the article. For example, an article about an oil leak with a picture of the leak can help the reader better understand the situation.

As a graphic designer, the use of images also come to play because the artist must use their subject and create a pleasing and interesting image so that the audience can become intrigued with what is advertised.

The use of photography comes in all sorts of forms, to entertain, to inform and to persuade. Everyone has their own reasons for creating images and the camera can help achieve those means.

Teenagers tend to focus on the entertainment side of photography, presenting amazing and creative photos that hint of potential. In high school, many students have talent that can’t always be seen, even when you have social media. That is why at Temescal Canyon High School there is a Photography Club that has a competition every month involving students. The person who wins gets their photo showcased on the school’s news, to display to everyone. It is simple, but fun none the less, when someone creates something amazing people should see.

Photography is the easiest thing to do now, but not everyone can make something meaningful and unique, so when someone does, it gets to be displayed.

The changeover centuries of cameras and photography made it as we know it today, a way to show one’s artistic view of the world, show a story, or show.

Everyone is unique in the way they perceive things. A photo of a vase won’t be exactly the same between two photographers. The uniqueness that individuals bring to the table, whether it be shot with film or digital, colorful or dreary, it all has its own quality and meaning. That’s the beauty of photography.