Words of Light
Analogous: comparable in certain respects
Etymological: relating to the origin and historical development of words and their meanings
Three main points:
-people think that photography can provide us with exact reproductions of the world, that it can give us a person, an object, or an event but Cadava argues the photographic image can only translate or picture what is already a photograph.
– Photographs create an irony. They “can only reproduce by condensing and immobilizing what it seeks to represent”. By trying to capture something, we are leaving things out.
-Perception and time are both important factors in a photograph. The author suggests that photographs do the very opposite of what they are intended to do: they “fail to seize reality”. Time connects the photo to a past time and/or history.
One pertinent question:
– “…infinitely diluted existence into a few more differentiated moments of an intenser life”. I think this means photos can make one point in time more colourful than it would be if shown in real time?
-Does this add to the argument about what is and is not art? Do we make every day things more interesting by simply photographing it or calling it art?
Two interesting things:
– The author has a definition for photography that breaks it down into matter and memory. He believes photography is a concept of “perception, memory, and representation”.
– Light can only be used well in a photograph if it is “interrupted” or “turned away from its course”.
Photography and Liquid Intelligence .
Infinitesimal: extremely small.
Substratum: an underlying layer or substance
Hubris: excessive pride or self-confidence
Three main points:
-Complicated natural forms are important in Walls’, they have contours that are unpredictable and raise interest
-Natural forms create juxtaposition between the very mechanical motion of the opening and closing of the shutter and the unique, unpredictable movement of natural forms.
-Water plays an important part in making and producing photography, but within the process, it also has to be controlled.
Two interesting things:
-Water is a symbolic representation of time, connects photography to the past
-Digital photography is neither good nor bad, this means there will be a new displacement of water in photography
One pertinent question:
Are there unpredictable or natural parts of the mechanical portion of photography? If so, does this mean that the mechanical part is bad or faulty?
a journey that wasn't 