Images and Text By James Montague
Photography is at an interesting point in its nearly 200-year history. I believe we are witnessing a rapid blurring of the very definition of photography itself. New tools, most recently AI, are adding to this – challenging our understanding and the very definition of the term.
I speak here only for myself and share my personal philosophy, what I believe is and is not photography and how this philosophy guides my work. So, here goes.
To be clear, in many respects I am a photographic traditionalist. As a foundation, this is Webster’s definition of photography:
“The art or process of producing images by the action of radiant energy and especially light on a sensitive surface (such as film or an optical sensor).”
Expanding on this traditional definition, two elements must be present and employed by the artist for any image to be a photograph: light and time. For me, since I do not currently make photograms, a third necessary element is some form of lens. If an artist creates work that does not require light and time, and possibly a lens, it may be beautiful and profound but, for me, it becomes something other than photography.
Portrait courtesy of John Shelton
Applying this to my own work, all my images are photographed on black and white film, developed and printed in a traditional darkroom. The only tools I use for creation of each final image are light, time and chemicals. My use of a scanner, computer and software is strictly limited to the digitization of work for my website, social media, responding to calls for entry, and online magazine features such as this.
I am a fine art photographer – not a photojournalist or documentarian. There are no social or grand messages I choose to share through my photography. I also firmly believe that each of my photographs must stand on its own without the need to be part of a series or project to have value or to be understood. Each day I work to elevate awareness, composition and execution to create photographs that provide a visual experience that is engaging and other than ordinary.
As a younger person, I studied music and played the saxophone. While I no longer call myself a musician, my photography is heavily influenced by how I feel about and respond to music – in particular what is commonly labeled “jazz”. To quote the late, great saxophonist Wayne Shorter:
“For me, the word ‘jazz’ means, ‘I dare you.’ To break out of something is worth more than getting an A in syncopation.”
Substitute “art” or “photography” for “jazz”, and you understand my personal artistic philosophy – dare to break out and create images that challenge me and those viewing my work. As an undergraduate jazz studies major in a conservatory setting, I was once asked how I differentiate orchestral (classical) music and jazz. After a lot of thought for such a difficult and loaded question, this was how I responded. Classical is the musical equivalent of a Shakespear play; the melodies and harmonies, like the words of the play, never change – nor should they since they are as close to perfection as humanly possible. Jazz, on the other hand, feels like an engaging conversation among friends.
No two conversation are ever the same and you never know where any conversation may lead. I love conversations – whether they be musical, verbal or visual.
While some of my work fits classical themes such as landscape, street, still life, etc., a significant amount of my work focuses on basic visual elements of point, line, area, form, texture, positive and negative space… rather than on any immediately recognizable object. “Emanation of the objective from the concealed, or subjective – passing from the abstract into the concrete….”* I hope you enjoy the images featured here and I dare you to accept that the object photographed is immaterial and to decide what each image feels like to you. I have started the conversation; what say you?
* Isis Unveiled, H.P. Blavatsky, 1877
All images and text © James Montague
Edge of Humanity Magazine
Presents
Photography & Philosophy
The freezing of a moment is a magical event. Images can make us feel love, rage and every sensation in between.
Photographers, whether partial or impartial to their subject matter, consume a massive amount of insight. Their participation cannot be substituted nor replicated. The moment is gone! The experiences will live in their minds and those encounters are immortalized in their photographs.
Edge of Humanity Magazine’s ‘Photography & Philosophy’ series will bring together the art and the mind of these fantastic creators.
If you would like to participate, please contact the editor jo@edgeofhumanity.com for more details.
Edge of Humanity Magazine is an independent nondiscriminatory platform that has no religious, political, financial, or social affiliations.
We are committed to publishing the human condition, the raw diverse global entanglement, with total impartiality.
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Thank you!
Great images – they remind me of some of Aaron Siskind’s photographs in their attention to detail.
Thank you for putting the distinction between photography and AI generated images into words. It is something I will always carry with me. The images you shared are extraordinary! What a gift you have!💕