Essay Example on Photography presents the world to Us

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Photography presents the world to us but solely the world the photographer creates Susan Sontag makes a clever assertion that photographs limit our ability to understand the world around us because we just process images as the camera shows them and accepting to apprend things the way they are is the reverse of true comprehension and assimilation The audience only perceives what s within the frame Photography makes a person or even forces a person to use their imagination to envision where and when the picture was taken what situations were happening at the time of the image or even why the picture was taken in the first place There is much more to life than what meets the eye which can be represented and validated in many more ways than one A visual examination of a photo is barely sufficient enough to embrace the significance of what was being photographed I support Sontag s stance that photography limits our understanding of the world in that photography gives you a sneak peek of reality but the realities have been influenced the photographer s transcendence Photography is used to swindle the audience's eyes 



For instance endorsements are displayed constantly in our everyday lives manipulating their viewers When a soda commercial is preparing to be advertised they intensify the color of the bottle and edit all the tiny details that appeal to our emotions making the soda look appetizing The only problem is that soda is not healthy for you but the viewers would not take note of the message because of the alterations the photographers have made Furthermore Sontag stated one never understands anything from a photograph The reason for that is because photography displays everything but context How can we depend on images to be our channel to the outside world Pictures can be amusing to admire and we can conclude what we want from them but a picture cannot tell us what it is it cannot explain to us the meaning behind it This cannot be the way in which we understand the world However as Sontag also pointed out Photographs fill in blanks in our mental pictures of the present and past For example if no pictures were taken during the WWII Holocaust it would be tough for people to be convinced that all the persecutions actually occurred Photographs give evidence and verify the past but do not demonstrate the hardships a citizen has lived through The world has heard the popular adage saying One tenth of a picture is worth ten thousand words However a handful have ever reflected if those words could ever thoroughly illustrate the intricacy of our world Sontag begins by stating that photography implies we know about the world if we accept it as the camera records it But to fully recognize the world one must not just directly analyze a pictures but actually experience the events in the photograph For instance a postcard can easily portray the validity of the argument

Many times friends and family send postcards of irrelevant beaches and the winter mountains to try and give one of their family members a glance of the entertaining excursions taking place Nevertheless no matter how exceptional the photo the person would never completely grasp the beauty and astonishments of the place until they experience it themselves Sontag was conscious of this herself when she proved one never understands anything from a photograph Leaving the physical aspects of a photograph behind one must also contemplate the limits a photograph puts on our judgement For example to learn how to play a sport one must practice not watch other teammates to sincerely pick up on the talent Sontag supports this by saying understanding is based on how it functions in contrast to how something seems to be She continues to assert that still photos will never actually achieve their main purpose Instead they will be a semblance of knowledge While this may seem a bit over exaggerated it can be encouraged Pictures are an image of what the world was like at one point in time The explanation itself suggests that a photograph is limiting when juxtaposing to the encompassing scene of reality Photographs can sometimes trigger an emotional response like to a natural disaster or a ravishing sunset Words ultimately can not do justice to certain things you are able to experience Pictures only assist the audience to improve their understanding of their meaning of what is actually taking place

Although photos limit our knowledge of the real world it gives us the opportunity to see things that would be impractical to see In fact it can deepen our comprehension and broaden our knowledge of the world around us Without photography people would have no idea of what emcompasses them and what events happened before On the other hand photography also does limit us in the view of the world like Sontag states in her claim Pictures are captured by photographers who selected what they want to communicate and how they want life to come across as By doing this reality was tampered with and became manipulated into something that it is not real It is an actuality constructed by the brain influenced by its emotions and desires Though pictures are effective for recalling instances of memories they will never be able to obtain the true beauty and astonishments of reality from such various limitations As Sontag writes Needing to have a reality confirmed and experience enhanced by photographs is an aesthetic consumerism to which everyone is now addicted Further reality will not be supported by photos because they are obverse By understanding that pictures apprehend emotions not truths and that photography is an implement used to advance photographer s personal opinions Susan Sontag s claim that photography limits our understanding of the world has a very valid logical basis


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