Photography, at its best, is an exploration into the essence of a thing. Photography, at its worst, is false advertising.
What do you see in this image? How do you imagine the scene just outside the frame? What do you feel? And, most importantly, what do you want to feel?
Would you believe that there are thousands of tourists standing on the beach just behind my camera, all jockeying, selfie sticks and tripods in hand, for the same perfect sunset shot? How would you possibly know that almost all of us, myself very much included, upon arriving at this unbelievably beautiful scene, after a frustrating day of traveling, were extremely disappointed, truly bummed by the overwhelming amounts of other tourists on the scene? That we were disappointed because all we saw were paradisiacal pictures like this beforehand, like the saturated, idyllic shots we all posted on our iPhones shortly after, all geotagged and hashtagged "Boracay", without any of the crowds or clutter, but with plenty of perfect sunsets, smiling faces, and turquoise waters?
In this digital age of instant gratification, are we fascinated by the sun setting over the tropical horizon? Or are we fascinated by the idea of others knowing that we are fascinated by the sun setting over the tropical horizon? Is this even close to the the truth, to the complexity of our daily human experience? Do we mention the clamoring, jostling crowds and the smell of piss and garbage in the interior streets? Do we mention the five-year-olds sleeping alone in the shadows of a 711 overflowing with wealthy tourists, with us, splurging on booze and candy and tobacco? Do we attempt to share the wide array of disappointments, uncertainties, and fear that riddle our lives? Are our feeds attempting to tell the whole story? And if not, why not? And if not, what are we trying to sell? And who exactly are we trying to sell it to? And why are we even trying to sell it in the first place?
Photography, at its best, is an exploration into the essence of a thing. Photography, at its worst, is false advertising.