My first creative profession was as a writer – I was a journalist working for the Irish Times and other publications in Ireland, the UK and the US, and I published a book of travel writing. The similarities of writing and photography for me are captured in a quote of the great landscape photographer Ansel Adams:
“Through the art of brush, pen, and lens … we possess a swift and sure means of touching the conscience and clearing the vision.”
We see so much and miss almost all of it, especially when it comes to the priceless moments of our children growing up, and the life of our family. As a writer it’s my job to sort through all that we see and present what really mattered elegantly and succinctly with words. And now it’s my job to do it with a camera.
So ‘clearing the vision’ reminds me that my job is to make myself and my clients actually see the beauty and wonder of life, and if I’m really lucky, ‘touch the conscience’ too.
> More on what I think being a writer has taught be about being a photographer.