Lately I've been hearing so many references to Susan Sontag's essays on photography that I picked up a collection to read for myself. Here are some of my favorite quotes so far:
"The camera's ability to transform reality into something beautiful derives from its relative weakness as a means of conveying truth."
"What is surreal is the distance imposed, and bridged, by the photograph: the social distance and the distance in time."
And one of the quotes that seems to be most commonly referenced:
"All photographs are momento mori. To take a photograph is to participate in another person's... mortality, vulnerability, mutability."
I don't always agree with Sontag's seemingly low valuation of photography as a means of building meaning and human connections, but her essays are definitely thought-provoking.
What I'm enjoying most about this book is how Sontag makes complex ideas about the way that photographs work seem so simple. Very often, I'll come across a line and think, 'Yes, that's exactly how we see a picture! Why didn't I notice that before?' Her essays on photography are equally about perception in modern society, so you don't have to be camera-crazy to appreciate this book.
