Peter Carroll’s photography blog

Photography books are a dime a dozen. Well, actually no – they go for about $40 each but you know what I mean. There’s no shortage of authors selling “how to” roadmaps. Every now and then, however, an author comes along and writes a photography book which throws a bucket of cold water on the industry. David duChemin is just such an author and Within the Frame published by Peachpit is just such a book.

Depending where you are on your photo journey David’s message may be like a teaspoon of Buckley’s couch syrup. It will be hard to swallow but it will be good for you in the long run. David’s a straight shooter and that’s what I love most about Within the Frame. You want the truth? Are you ready for it? This photography thing is hard. Plain and simple. There are no shortcuts. It’s hard work. You can buy the latest camera but look all you want in the box it came in because I guarantee you that you won’t find a free pass to being a great photographer. As David says, “Gear is good. Vision is better”. Photography is all about vision and great photography is where craft and vision meet. Becoming a craftsman takes time. Check out an old blog post of mine about the 10,000 hour rule. Sorry to break this to you but there are no shortcuts. Shortcuts anyway are all about destination. Craft is all about the journey.

Joe McNally, who wrote the forward to the book, sums up Within the Frame nicely when he says, “David gives you the tools and information that enable you to make the camera - a machine – an extension of the human heart and mind. Then he gives you a road map…and invites you on the journey. It’s a trip well worth taking”.

Early on in my photo journey I came across a book that changed the way I look at the world around me. That book was Freeman Patterson’s Photography and the Art of Seeing. I can think of no higher praise for David duChemin’s book that to say it deserves its place on the bookshelf right beside the book that inspired me to be a photographer and to express my vision of the world around me within the frame.

I’m starting a new series of posts here on the blog called “Quotations That Inspire”. About once a week or so I’ll post a quotation by a photographer which has influenced my own photographic journey and hopefully will inspire you in your photography work.

I have Canadian photographer Freeman Patterson to thank for helping me make the jump from taking photographs to making photographs. I was in my local library one day, when I first got interested in photography,  looking through the photography section when I came across Freeman’s book – Photography for the Joy of It.  His photographs were wonderful but what really got my attention were his words. He wrote about photography like no one else I had ever come across. He saw wonder and beauty all around him and communicated the joy of framing that vision in such an inspirational way. The photographic journey is full of twists and turns, ups and downs, and through it all Freeman has been a wonderful mentor with words to focus and inspire me. I strongly encourage you to pick up one of his books (maybe start with Photography and the Art of Seeing) and enjoy the gift of this man’s insights into the world of photography and life in general. Here’s today’s quotation…

“Seeing, in the finest and broadest sense, means using your senses, your intellect, and your emotions. It means encountering your subject matter with your whole being. It means looking beyond the labels of things and discovering the remarkable world around you.” – Freeman Patterson