The question of why photography is important is subjective in nature, so we’ll leave for you to decide for yourself. Nevertheless, it is a perfectly reasonable question to ask, and for what it is worth we are going to outline why we think so.
Photography is an Art Form That Any One Can Participate In
If you have ever been to a photographic exhibition and looked at the images on display, you cannot deny that photography is an art form.
Admittedly the actual image is not created physically by the photographer in the same way a painter or a sculptor create their art, but it still relies on the imagination and skill of the person taking the photograph.
One of the great beauties of photography is that just about anyone can participate, learn the skills required, and become an accomplished photographer if they choose to do so.
This does not really apply to most other art forms, where the skills necessary to be successful are not as easily learned, and more often are regarded as skills one has been gifted naturally.
There Are No Limits to Photography
If you think about it, mankind has had the skills, invention and the motivation to be able to photograph things as big as entire galaxies, and as small as an atom, and everything in between.
But it’s not just in terms of sizes where there are apparently no limits as there is literally an infinite number of images that anyone with a camera can capture.
Even in the room, you’re sitting in as you read this, you could spend days taking every photograph imaginable, and there would still be many more that it is possible to take. With imagination, a desire, and a camera there are literally no limits to what photographs you can create.
Photography Captures Memories
While we have our mind to capture memories of events in our life, photography has always been a medium by which we are able to look back and remember.
In most cases, they’ll be happy recollections, but they can also bring some sadness as we look at those who have passed on, but surely remembering those loved ones, is an even greater reason that photography is so important to us.
Photography Connects Us with Others
This might be regarded as a more recent reason why photography is important, especially with the advent of the internet and social media in particular.
What these have done is allow us to connect with others from all parts of the globe, with the use of photographs.
The image could be of something humorous that makes us laugh, something shocking that has us wincing, a controversial image that has anger building inside of us, or simply an image of a newborn baby in the family that has us smiling.
Whatever it is we can now connect with millions of people thanks to photography and more to the point, emotions can be invoked in both directions.
Photography Documents History
In today’s modern world of media, video has obviously become the premier source of images of important events around the world, that in time could be regarded as historical.
That being the case, there is still a hugely important role for photography to play in recording our history.
Obviously, there was a time where photographs were the only possible media, and we should be eternally grateful for those photographs which depict historical events from around the late 1800s and thereafter.
Photographic images of world events may no longer be the only means of them being recorded, but they can often be a more accurate, and even more dramatic depiction of them.
There is nothing like seeing a single instance in time, frozen for eternity and which allows you to examine it in great detail.
Just seeing the expressions on people’s faces, at the exact moment something happens can be worth it alone and is an experience that moving pictures doesn’t really afford us.
Photography Helps Us to Learn
The expression ‘a picture paints a thousand words,’ does not literally mean that by looking at an image you will learn as much as you would reading 1,000 words.
However, there is no denying that photographic images play an enormous role in the education of both children and adults. Photographs bring words to life and help you see and understand what the text is saying.
Photographs are used in just about learning establishment and at all levels of education, from kindergarten, throughout school, and all the way up to very top universities.
Even for less formal learning scenarios photographs are important. Just ask anyone who has baked a cake recipe from a cookbook or put together a self-assembled piece of furniture.
Brad is a seasoned photographer whose journey began in 2006 with a 3.1-megapixel digital camera. Over the years, he has specialized in various photography genres—from weddings and portraiture to product and studio photography. Based on the Sunshine Coast of QLD, Brad combines his love for education and photography, sharing his expertise on DSLRAD.com, a platform committed to capturing life’s treasured moments and empowering photography enthusiasts.