--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We've spent now about 150 years trying to…" description: "\"We've spent now about 150 years trying to convince ourselves that photographs are reliable evidence, some unimpeachable slice of the real world. That w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d5/a-d-coleman-48088_convince_we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-t_2761328.png" --- # We've spent now about 150 years trying to convince… ![“We've spent now about 150 years trying to convince ourselves that photographs are reliable evidence, some unimpeachable slice of the real world. That was a myth from the very beginning.” quote by A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d5/a-d-coleman-48088_convince_we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-t_2761328.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d5/a-d-coleman-48088_convince_we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-t_2761328.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d5/a-d-coleman-48088_convince_we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-t_2761328.png) > “We've spent now about 150 years trying to convince ourselves that photographs are reliable evidence, some unimpeachable slice of the real world. That was a myth from the very beginning.” [A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Photographs are often trusted as factual records, but they are constructed and can mislead. **In simple terms:** Photos aren’t always true evidence. Key Takeaway Question the authenticity of images. Themes media literacy perception truth Mood skeptical analytical Type critical inspirational When to use this quote - news consumption - historical research - social media - legal evidence Key Concepts visual epistemology construction of reality Questions to Reflect On - What motivates you to verify a photo’s source? - How does context change a photo’s meaning? A Different Perspective Images can be altered or framed to convey bias. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [150 Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/150-years-273081/) [Convince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convince/) [Convince Photographs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convince-photographs-3172915/) [Evidence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evidence/) [Evidence Unimpeachable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evidence-unimpeachable-3172917/) [Myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth/) [Photograph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photograph/) [Photographs Reliable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographs-reliable-3172916/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Real world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-world/) [Reliable Evidence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reliable-evidence-1854012/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [“As I wander through my sparse forest of memories, photographs have been my most reliable compass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoko-ogawa/as-i-wander-through-my-sparse-forest-of-memories-photographs-have/) [Yōko Ogawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoko-ogawa/) > [“Practical experience can coney a person's actual fundemental understanding of a specific idea with the inclusion of supporting & reliable evidence rather than only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saaif-alam/practical-experience-can-coney-a-person-s-actual-fundemental/) [Saaif Alam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saaif-alam/) > [Tedious as it may appear to some to dwell on the discovery of odds and ends that have, no doubt, been thrown away by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustus-pitt-rivers/tedious-as-it-may-appear-to-some-to-dwell-on-the-discovery-of-odds/) [Augustus Pitt Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustus-pitt-rivers/) > [There's always a miasma of misinformation emerging from the higher education sector as to which are the 'best' courses to take. My advice would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-puttnam/there-s-always-a-miasma-of-misinformation-emerging-from-the-higher/) [David Puttnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-puttnam/) > [We've had Salvationists in the family for more than 150 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakin-stevens/we-ve-had-salvationists-in-the-family-for-more-than-150-years/) [Shakin' Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakin-stevens/) > [I believe truly that Canada is a living history and we're going through some of the most important time in this country's short 150 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-boyden/i-believe-truly-that-canada-is-a-living-history-and-we-re-going/) [Joseph Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-boyden/) > [How has the world of the child changed in the last 150 years?" The answer is. "It's hard to imagine any way in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-senge/how-has-the-world-of-the-child-changed-in-the-last-150-years-the/) [Peter Senge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-senge/) > [Even with the sacred printing press, we got erotic novels 150 years before we got scientific journals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clay-shirky/even-with-the-sacred-printing-press-we-got-erotic-novels-150-years/) [Clay Shirky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clay-shirky/) > [“We’ve lost an estimated 50 to 80 percent carbon in our soils over the last 150 years.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-d-schwartz/we-ve-lost-an-estimated-50-to-80-percent-carbon-in-our-soils-over-the/) [Judith D. Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-d-schwartz/) > [Whatever it is Christ said doesn't get a fair shake. There's not much written, it was done 150 years later, and it was used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rickie-lee-jones/whatever-it-is-christ-said-doesn-t-get-a-fair-shake-there-s-not-much/) [Rickie Lee Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rickie-lee-jones/) > [“I want my last 50 years on this earth to be amazing. Of course, I still want to have 150 years before those last 50 years begin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-want-my-last-50-years-on-this-earth-to-be-amazing-of-course-i-still/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [In architecture you should live for 150 years, because you have to learn in the first 75 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renzo-piano/in-architecture-you-should-live-for-150-years-because-you-have-to/) [Renzo Piano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renzo-piano/) > [A lot of the people in history who I really admire lived before the hyperinformation age we're living in. Even if they were governing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/a-lot-of-the-people-in-history-who-i-really-admire-lived-before-the/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [“which had existed for 150 years, that married couples were not permitted”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-hoey/which-had-existed-for-150-years-that-married-couples-were-not/) [Brian Hoey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-hoey/) > [As I told a friend of mine once who asked me why I joined Mercury, I think if I had been alive 150 years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-grissom/as-i-told-a-friend-of-mine-once-who-asked-me-why-i-joined-mercury-i/) [Gus Grissom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-grissom/) ## More by A. D. Coleman > [... the battle for the acceptance of photography as Art was not only counter-productive but counter-revolutionary. The most important photography is most emphatically not Art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/the-battle-for-the-acceptance-of-photography-as-art-was-not-only/) [A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) > [It is no coincidence that one cardinal rule in brainwashing is to remove from the victim all photographs of himself and people he has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/it-is-no-coincidence-that-one-cardinal-rule-in-brainwashing-is-to/) [A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) > [What a photograph shows us is how a particular thing could be seen, or could be made to look - at a specific moment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/what-a-photograph-shows-us-is-how-a-particular-thing-could-be-seen-or/) [A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) > [The simple fact is this: There are no neutral photographs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/the-simple-fact-is-this-there-are-no-neutral-photographs/) [A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) > [The past is always with us, in the form of our photographs, which we feel as we might a rosary, wearing them smooth with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/the-past-is-always-with-us-in-the-form-of-our-photographs-which-we/) [A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) > [Any photographer worth his/her salt - that is, any photographer of professional caliber, in control of the craft, regardless of imagistic bent - can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/any-photographer-worth-his-her-salt-that-is-any-photographer-of/) [A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) > [Photographs are of course about their makers, and are to be read for what they disclose in that regard no less than for what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/photographs-are-of-course-about-their-makers-and-are-to-be-read-for/) [A. D. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) [Explore all 8 A. D. Coleman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/) ## More Convince quotes > [“Sometimes we want something to be true so badly that we convince ourselves that it is true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/sometimes-we-want-something-to-be-true-so-badly-that-we-convince/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) > [The privilege of prayer to me is one of the most cherished possessions, because faith and experience alike convince me that God himself sees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-grenfell/the-privilege-of-prayer-to-me-is-one-of-the-most-cherished/) [Wilfred Grenfell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-grenfell/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [The first duty of a wise advocate is to convince his opponents that he understands their arguments, and sympathies with their just feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-first-duty-of-a-wise-advocate-is-to-convince-his-opponents-that/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Once you convince people that they're victims, you really own them because you've just told them that whatever problems they have in life, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/once-you-convince-people-that-they-re-victims-you-really-own-them/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The people on the QVC shopping channel convince me that life is worth living. They see the good in everything. People who go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-vegas/the-people-on-the-qvc-shopping-channel-convince-me-that-life-is-worth/) [Johnny Vegas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-vegas/) > [“What can I say to convince you the Houses of Parliament dissolve night after night to become the fluid dream of the Thames? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisel-mueller/what-can-i-say-to-convince-you-the-houses-of-parliament-dissolve/) [Lisel Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisel-mueller/) > [Human beings have the incredible capacity for denial. I think they do. And although it's really hard to believe, I have my doubts. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/human-beings-have-the-incredible-capacity-for-denial-i-think-they-do/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [“If you can convince yourself, you can convince the other fellow,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sanders/if-you-can-convince-yourself-you-can-convince-the-other-fellow/) [Tim Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sanders/) > [Don't lie to yourself about what you can't or can achieve. Convince yourself on a realistic level that you can do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-lie-to-yourself-about-what-you-can-t-or-can-achieve-convince/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't ever let anyone convince you that your imagination is wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-bianco/don-t-ever-let-anyone-convince-you-that-your-imagination-is-wrong/) [Giuseppe Bianco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-bianco/) > [It's hard to convince your agents and managers to do theater, because it's not as financially rewarding and it takes up a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-helberg/it-s-hard-to-convince-your-agents-and-managers-to-do-theater-because/) [Simon Helberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-helberg/) > [I guess that is the strange part of the human brain that people have studied for eons - is hatred and self-hatred. You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-noah/i-guess-that-is-the-strange-part-of-the-human-brain-that-people-have/) [Trevor Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-noah/) > [I knew I shouldn't like him cause I know it's not working, and everybody tells me that, and I convince myself I don't... and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/i-knew-i-shouldn-t-like-him-cause-i-know-it-s-not-working-and/) [Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/) > [The statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-statesmen-will-invent-cheap-lies-putting-the-blame-upon-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) [Browse all 1,431 Convince quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convince/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We've spent now about 150 years trying to convince ourselves that photographs are reliable evidence, some unimpeachable slice of the real world. That was a myth from the very beginning.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "A. D. Coleman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-to-convince-ourselves-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Convince" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-to-convince-ourselves-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d5/a-d-coleman-48088_convince_we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-t_2761328.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d5/a-d-coleman-48088_convince_we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-t_2761328.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d5/a-d-coleman-48088_convince_we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-t_2761328.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We've spent now about 150 years trying to convince ourselves that photographs are reliable evidence, some…” — A. D. Coleman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "A. D. Coleman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-d-coleman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We've spent now about 150 years...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-to-convince-ourselves-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-d-coleman/we-ve-spent-now-about-150-years-trying-to-convince-ourselves-that/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```