Question

Photographs 

Answer 1

Photographs are memories that we cherish forever. It is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever..... it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything. 

         Photographs are created with the future in mind. They are one of the few things that never matters in the moment, never serves any purpose, but are still often taken. They are used for memories, so the image will not fade in your mind as the years move on. Or, as social media has exploded as a popular tool, they are for others, so they can know what is happening in your life. So they can know how much fun you are having, and envy you. Or, so they can simply obtain a glimpse into your life, and know what you are doing even when yu are far away and never talk to them. They are a connection . 

          They are the truth. The moment as you see it, completely unexaggerated, as events often are when stories are told. It is true that filters may distort an image, but the basic outlines and construct of the image will hold true. 

          They are a lie. We smile when we do not want to, pretend to laugh, put our arms around someone we barely know. They are a highlight reel, each one strategically placed in a magazine or on the internet. They are touched and retouched within an inch of their life.

         The oldest photo that still exists is the view from a window. It took eight hours of exposure, an average full day at work, and the quality is terrible. The view could be considered, at best, a faint blur of a memory for anyone who witnessed it.

          The first known picture ever taken including a human looks out a window at a busy street, where a man in the distance receives a shoe shine. Due to the long exposure time needed to take a picture, the street looks deserted. That man was the only person remaining stationary for long enough to be captured by the camera. He is real, but his surroundings are a lie, leaving him on a silent street in a ghost town.

          It is a concept that everyone has considered: The idea of photos controlling your life. When your friend yells at you to wait while she takes a picture of an average view, or you live the concert through your phone screen, you are falling subject to placing memory higher than experience on your importance scale.

             People used to only take pictures of the important moments in life. They had to carefully choose what was worth taking a picture of, because of the cost and difficulties in obtaining a camera and developing pictures.

           Photos have other meaningful uses besides simply capturing a memory. They transport people to locations they could never dream of going, or help someone understand the troubles and wonders on opposite sides of the world. They elicit a reaction, whether it be a laugh at an amusing expression, or anger at a terrain ravaged by war. They are universal in what people can physically see, but incredibly individual in how they feel.

             Photos are a mechanism used to transport memories through time, and even if the photo is not your own, it will bring forth a memory that no one else can truly understand. The deceiving nature of the photo tells us how it can easily convince you to believe in the impossible.