Why do we take photographs?

I found myself contemplating this question while driving home from where I work (of all places, a camera store).

In the past few years, the photographs I’ve taken have not really been for myself, rather they’ve been for other people — models, businesses, advertisers, product manufacturers, fashion designers and so on.

While I’ve certainly enjoyed the broad scope of subjects and the multi-faceted skill set that has resulted from capturing such images, it’s a far cry from the reason I originally picked up a camera.

I want this to change.

Why do I take photographs?

I take photographs because I can.

I want to capture a sliver of the human experience visually. To record what it’s like to be there in that one tiny moment of existence. To have a record of the sight, sound, smell, feel, and emotional response of that impossibly short, fleeting moment when everything is absolute… when time stops and you no longer wonder about the meaning of life.

The photograph is taken to capture something that is inside me during that brief moment and share it with others. Or perhaps keep for myself. It is an attempt at creating a negative of the spirit — a picture of that which we cannot understand within ourselves.

For me, this year is going to be about capturing memories for myself — whether it be the floating dandelion flower blossom that lands to rest beside me as I lay in my forested haven, or the warmth in the smile of a friend, the raindrops trailing paths down my car window as I wait by the side of the road just enjoying the ambience.

From tomorrow onwards, I will — like many others have done and are currently doing — begin the project for myself of capturing one photo a day for a year… purely for myself.

I trust that this will renew my passion for creating memories for myself and, of course, improve my technical and creative photographic skills.

This is a journey of discovery and one I will travel despite not yet knowing where it will lead. Still, I follow with my camera.

Signing off,

Janaka

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