Photography is a weird thing, isn’t it? If we consider the fact that photography is the one medium considered to represent reality in the most natural way, I suppose it’s no wonder that most people consider a person with a camera to do just that.

Represent reality.

And from that perspective, surely many people may wonder why someone like me would turn their attention to puddles of water, autumn leaves on the ground, or for that matter - something that most people wouldn’t even pay attention to, because it’s so mundane.

I’ve been thinking about this quite a lot lately, actually. I’ve had imaginary discussions with friends where they ask me what it is that I see in this or that boring thing.

And the answer I always provide in these fiction discussions is:

I see a photograph there.

It is the whole idea of photographing, isn’t it? To frame, to crop reality, to put borders on one tiny bit of the world, and to investigate what the relationships between elements within this visual container do.

And when I say that [ Eye C ] a photograph there, it is exactly what happens.

I tend to be able to separate the infinite reality from contained images/photographs while I’m looking at it. To me, it’s not the same. Thus, I can very easily zoom in on something that interests me, whether it be a puddle of water, some sort of breach in a brick wall, how two flowers relate to each other within a contained frame - or something else entirely.

The question to me is always;

What can I do with this?

I rarely, if ever these days, look at something and think WOW, that’s a cool motif, how do I photograph that in the most flattering way!?

There are of course a million ways to relate to one’s photographic practice. I’m more than curious what yours looks like - so feel free to let me know.

You know where to find me (press reply, or visit me on Mastodon or the.Fotoapp.co (@essempe))!

Best photography regards,
Malinka Persson