5 INSPIRING PHOTOGRAPHY QUOTES FOR DREAMERS AND DOERS
It’s no secret that I love an inspirational quote. My Instagram stories and Pinterest boards form the basis of my daily pep-talks. They’re as much for me as anyone else.
When you decide to learn something new, there’s a shift that needs to happen. You have to make space for it in your heart as well as your head. To find ways to commit to the journey and form new habits you want to keep when the initial burst of motivation wears off. As they say, “you will never always be motivated, so you must learn to be disciplined”. For me, inspirational or motivational quotes are the gentlest way to keep me on track.
With this in mind, here are five of my favourite photography quotes. These are the ones that caught my eye to really inspire me when I was starting out as a beginner photographer. They helped me nurture a creative mindset and continue to motivate the eternal learner in me.
1. "The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it" - Ansel Adams
When you're not feeling particularly inspired, it can be all too easy to make excuses. Not having a "good enough" camera is often enough to stop some people from making progress with their photography. The truth is, that any camera is better than no camera and even if you are simply shooting with a smartphone or a point and shoot, you can still be learning how to compose a great photo or the way the light falls in your frame. Basically, it doesn't matter what you're shooting with, as long as you can keep shooting regularly.
As a mum, it’s not always easy or practical or easy for me to take the big camera out but I will try and shoot at least one frame a day, even if it’s just with my iPhone….
What this quote also says is that your photos are really all about YOU, not your equipment. Put a group of photographers in front of the same scene with identical equipment and they will likely come up with a very different set of photos. Everyone sees and interprets the world differently and photography really is an amazing way to share your soul with the world.
2. "Don't shoot what it looks like. Shoot what it feels like" - David Alan Harvey
Bringing your personality to your photography is so important. It's what makes your images unique and allows you to tell your story. It’s useful to learn and follow certain rules, especially as a beginner. The rule of thirds, leading lines, colour theory- these all act as signposts that can be helpful in guiding our eye. There’s a visual language that’s helpful to convey our message in ways it can be understood. I love working within these parameters but at the same time, allowing my creativity to fill the gaps. What this quote says to me is don't be afraid to follow your vision. The feeling behind the image is so, so important.
3. "If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough" - Robert Capa
If you're not familiar with Robert Capa's work, now's the time to Google. His incredible ability to document scenes of war with his camera demonstrated an incredible amount of fearlessness and dedication. This may even be my favourite photography quote of all time as it’s one I seem to revisit in my mind time and time again. Over the years, it remains something of mantra when I'm shooting and not quite getting the shot.
I tend to feel the greatest pull to my subject when I’m shooting with my 35mm f1.4. With its short focal length (35mm), getting close is usually rewarded, often resulting in some of my favourite photos.
4. "Which of my photographs is my favourite? The one I'm going to take tomorrow" - Imogen Cunningham
How refreshing to know that you're always moving forward. As we grow and change as people, so too does our photography. Don't let yourself feel bogged down by mistakes you might have made the last time you took your camera out. Remind yourself that there are no failures, only opportunities to learn. Try to enjoy the journey of learning and look forward to how you might shoot the same scene differently next time. Keeping this in mind can help you keep momentum and not look back with too much of a critical eye.
5. "Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst" - Henri Cartier-Bresson
"10,000?!?" I hear you cry. Don't let the number put you off. As long as you keep going, you're improving all the time. I actually found this quote very helpful when I was starting out as it felt like it gave me the green light to take dodgy photos. I experimented without expectation, valuing process over product. It was actually very liberating and I think I learnt a lot very quickly as a result. I felt confident that I was making lots of mistakes but that was ok, that was the point. My mistakes were helping me learn. Apart from that, I counted myself lucky, when Henri Cartier-Bresson said these wise words, he was shooting and developing film!
Hopefully these quotes can inspire you to continue your photography journey throughout the rest of the year and beyond. You can pin each quote to your Pinterest boards should you wish to collect them for your own inspiration scrap book.
Do you have any favourite photography quotes to share? Pop them in the comments below so we can all join in and keep the inspiration going.
Suzie x
(Blog post thumbnail image kindly shared by Kenrick Mills on Unsplash)
