Still photographs are the most powerful weapon in the world.”
—Eddie Adams, TIME MAGAZINE
We can either take pictures
Of what we see
Or what we want to see
In our world.
We aren’t confined
To the way light currently bounces -
We have the opportunity to bend it
At will.
We also don’t have to share our photography
And tell the same narratives
That we have always told.
We can use photography for change.
We can use photography to demonstrate
Perspectives that have never been seen
Values that have never been realized
Tones that need to still be felt
Compositions that need to still be written.
In a society that needs narrative therapy
Photography is one of the best tools
For changing the stories we tell ourselves.
Photography can disrupt the echo-chambers
In our newsfeeds
In our politics
In our education system
In our own heads.
Subjects
Both people and larger themes
Get concerned over a camera raised in their direction
Because they automatically see it as a threat
To the status quo.
But photographs do lie
Even without manipulation
They are only half-truths -
Bytes out of day to day life.
Yet photography remains
One of the most effective ways to communicate
Across the barriers of culture,
Language,
Time, and
Experience.
The only real barrier that ever existed
Was the digital divide
But with the rise of the smartphone
As a global platform
Accessibility is also becoming
A non-issue
All it takes
Is one click
To change the world -
So go out and protest
With your eyes
And your finger
And don’t forget to breathe.
