Being a Photographer Means Being a Rebel at Heart
When I was young, I had a really cool uncle who told me a joke.
He said that when he was my age, he really wanted a new bike. He would pray every night for months on end, but his prayers were never answered.
Then one day he went to church and learned that the Lord doesn't work that way.
So instead, he went out and stole a bike, and asked for the Lord's forgiveness.
Role model material aside, the overall moral of that joke has stayed with me to this day.
There are countless events in our everyday lives where we are held back from doing the things we want to do, because we need someone else's permission or approval first - and a lot of the time, that approval requires us to jump through endless hoops before our request is even considered.
Pretty much from the day we are born, we have to listen to our parents. Then, to our teachers. Then, to our bosses and managers. It's an endless wheel of subordinates doing what they are told, and feeling guilty if we even think about stepping out of line.
Enter the Freedom of Photography
One of the beautiful things about photography, is that it allows you to be a little bit of a rebel. To steal that bike without any real consequences.
The simple act of holding a camera with the intention of capturing some cool photos, feels like a temporary license to do something that you wouldn't otherwise dare do.
It's a little bit like the theory that as long as you're wearing a bright yellow vest and carrying a ladder, you will be allowed to enter pretty much any space, no questions asked.
In that moment, when you stop in the middle of the street to take your camera out of your backpack, something changes in the way you feel about yourself, as well as the way you see others.
You are no longer another face in the crowd. You are outside of it, like an observer looking in. The crowd is also no longer a bunch of random, faceless people going about their business. Each and every crowd member is now an exciting photographic subject with endless potential.
Whilst holding a camera, you feel as if you've entered into an invisible contract with the world around you, that you now have permission to attempt to capture its beauty. The streets take on a brand new vibe, one full of life, creativity, and cliches.
Every empty bottle feels like a setup for a potentially awesome shot. Every puddle is now a window into a brand new world of reflections and awesome compositions. Every contrasting colour feels like an opportunity to make some sort of political statement, create a juxtaposition, or tell a visual pun.
The camera gives you the confidence to capture what you see around you, without feeling like you have to ask anyone's permission for the opportunity to capture them doing something awesome. If they're not happy that you took their picture, you have no problem saying sorry and deleting the photo.
Being a photographer gives us the power to be the director of the stage in front of us, except that we're not directing anyone. Instead, we're using the existing players to carve out a story around them, by placing ourselves in locations where the action comes to us.
You get a similar buzz from listening to music while wearing headphones. You start to conduct the world to the beat of the song, like you're living inside of a video clip or a movie montage. However, when it comes to music, you don't have anything real to show for it at the end of the day. With photography, on the other hand, you have a bunch of cool new photos which you can re-direct once more and edit them to your liking.
If anyone ever asked me why I love photography, this blog right here would be my response.
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Happy shooting!
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