The Tao of Photography

Henri Cartier-Bresson: "To take a photograph is to align the head, the eye and the heart. It's a way of life."

Cartier-Bresson’s observations regarding photography ring true; they always have. Like his timeless images that live on long after his passing on August 3, 2004 HCB’s thoughts on the photographic process remain relevant and powerful in our modern world. One look at his work will reveal that photography was to him not merely a pastime but was a way of life.

For those who take it seriously, photography is a lifelong journey on a road that is at times challenging, rewarding, exasperating, exhilarating, depressing, joyous, maddening and fulfilling. It is one of the first things we think about when we awaken in the morning and one of the last things we think about as we drift off to sleep. We read books and magazines about photography every day; we study other photographer’s images, we study our own images; we work to learn, we work to improve our art and craft and to advance in the direction of our goals, dreams and intentions.

In 1997, singer/songwriter Meredith Brooks wrote of the agony and the ecstasy that relationships can bring. She could easily have been writing of the exhilaration and sometimes the frustration that this labor of love we call photography can bring into our lives:

“I’m a bitch, I'm a lover
I'm a child, I'm a mother
I'm a sinner, I'm a saint
I do not feel ashamed
I'm your hell, I'm your dream
I'm nothing in between
You know you wouldn't want it any other way…”

Like the object of Brooks’ affection, we image makers wouldn’t want it any other way.

Photography is our Tao - our way of life.