--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have often thought that if photography…" description: "\"I have often thought that if photography were difficult in the true sense of the term-meaning that the creation of a simple photograph would entail as ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fa/ansel-adams-2687_creation_i-have-often-thought-that-if-photography_216247.jpg" --- # I have often thought that if photography were difficult in… ![“I have often thought that if photography were difficult in the true sense of the term-meaning that the creation of a simple photograph would entail as much time and effort as the production of a good watercolor or etching-there would be a vast improvement in total output. The sheer ease with which…” quote by Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fa/ansel-adams-2687_creation_i-have-often-thought-that-if-photography_216247.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fa/ansel-adams-2687_creation_i-have-often-thought-that-if-photography_216247.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fa/ansel-adams-2687_creation_i-have-often-thought-that-if-photography_216247.jpg) > “I have often thought that if photography were difficult in the true sense of the term-meaning that the creation of a simple photograph would entail as much time and effort as the production of a good watercolor or etching-there would be a vast improvement in total output. The sheer ease with which we can produce a superficial image often leads to creative disaster.” [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He argues that ease of photography leads to superficial images and hampers artistic depth, unlike labor‑intensive arts that demand skill and thought. **In simple terms:** Easy photos are shallow; effort creates depth. Key Takeaway Embrace discipline in visual creation. Themes art craft depth discipline creativity Mood reflective critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - photography practice - art education - personal projects - gallery preparation Key Concepts Aesthetic theory process vs product artistic integrity Questions to Reflect On - How does effort translate into artistic value? - Can simplicity be profound? A Different Perspective Effort alone doesn’t guarantee quality; skill and vision matter. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Creation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) [Creative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Difficult True](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-true-1116004/) [Disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disaster/) [Ease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ease/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Etching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/etching/) [Good photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-photography/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Improvement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/improvement/) [Output](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/output/) [Photograph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photograph/) [Photographer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographer/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Photography Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography-difficult-2220011/) [Produce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/produce/) [Productions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/productions/) [Productivity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/productivity/) [Sheer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sheer/) [Simple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simple/) [Superficial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superficial/) [Superficial Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superficial-image-2220012/) [Term](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/term/) [Thought Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-photography-1500387/) [Time And Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-and-effort/) [Watercolors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/watercolors/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) ## Related quotes > [The sheer ease with which we can produce a superficial image often leads to creative disaster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/the-sheer-ease-with-which-we-can-produce-a-superficial-image-often/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [I've always thought photography was an art form, but it had very low appreciation in the beginning, except for some Europeans, and of course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/i-ve-always-thought-photography-was-an-art-form-but-it-had-very-low/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [Bad weather makes for good photography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/bad-weather-makes-for-good-photography/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [I find that when one has worked long enough, technical know-how becomes almost irrelevant. In photography, it's not difficult to reach a technical level…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-kenna/i-find-that-when-one-has-worked-long-enough-technical-know-how/) [Michael Kenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-kenna/) > [Photography is not difficult - as long as you have something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-giacomelli/photography-is-not-difficult-as-long-as-you-have-something-to-say/) [Mario Giacomelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-giacomelli/) > [I say half jokingly that photography is the most difficult of the arts. It does require a certain arrogance to see and to choose.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is-the-most-difficult-of-the/) [Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/) > [It is easy to die for a friend, It is difficult to find out a true friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fzal/it-is-easy-to-die-for-a-friend-it-is-difficult-to-find-out-a-true/) [Fzal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fzal/) > [It is really difficult to find true love, but if you love and love and more love and wait and have faith you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-really-difficult-to-find-true-love-but-if-you-love-and-love-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Why couldn’t I want something easy?” “Because that’s not like you. You’ve always been fond of the difficult.” “True enough. I like you, after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-mcginnis/why-couldn-t-i-want-something-easy-because-that-s-not-like-you-you-ve/) [Mindy McGinnis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-mcginnis/) > [In this industry there's this ridiculous connotation with women shows that's it's got to be difficult, and it's not true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-marie-combs/in-this-industry-there-s-this-ridiculous-connotation-with-women-shows/) [Holly Marie Combs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-marie-combs/) > [The question is not whether a picture is good, in some formal, technical sense, but, does it mean what I need it to mean?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-roma/the-question-is-not-whether-a-picture-is-good-in-some-formal/) [Thomas Roma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-roma/) > [I always thought of photography as a naughty thing to do - that was one of my favorite things about it, and when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-arbus/i-always-thought-of-photography-as-a-naughty-thing-to-do-that-was-one/) [Diane Arbus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-arbus/) > [I got into journalism through writing, primarily. So even when I took photos when I was reporting, I never thought of photography as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamelle-bouie/i-got-into-journalism-through-writing-primarily-so-even-when-i-took/) [Jamelle Bouie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamelle-bouie/) > [I've always thought photography was a bit of an adventure, so to come home with the film, develop it, then look at the results…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-corbijn/i-ve-always-thought-photography-was-a-bit-of-an-adventure-so-to-come/) [Anton Corbijn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-corbijn/) > [I think we seem to remember things in still pictures. I never gave up on painting. When they said painting was dead, I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/i-think-we-seem-to-remember-things-in-still-pictures-i-never-gave-up/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) ## More by Ansel Adams > [I know the importance of highly trained awareness of the “moment” and the immediate and intuitive response of the photographer. It should be obvious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/i-know-the-importance-of-highly-trained-awareness-of-the-moment-and/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [It is easy to take a photograph, but it is harder to make a masterpiece in photography than in any other art medium.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/it-is-easy-to-take-a-photograph-but-it-is-harder-to-make-a/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [Black and white photography is truly quite a 'departure from reality', and the transition from one aspect of visual magic to another was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/black-and-white-photography-is-truly-quite-a-departure-from-reality/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [Wilderness is rapidly becoming one of those aspects of the American dream which is more of the past than of the present. Wilderness is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/wilderness-is-rapidly-becoming-one-of-those-aspects-of-the-american/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/the-single-most-important-component-of-a-camera-is-the-twelve-inches/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [We make images to "honor what is greater and more interesting than we are."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/we-make-images-to-honor-what-is-greater-and-more-interesting-than-we/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [Photographers and artists contribute a lot to the world and have a right to exist in relative security and comfort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/photographers-and-artists-contribute-a-lot-to-the-world-and-have-a/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [There are worlds of experience beyond the world of the aggressive man, beyond history, and beyond science. The moods and qualities of nature and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/there-are-worlds-of-experience-beyond-the-world-of-the-aggressive-man/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [Yosemite Valley, to me, is always a sunrise, a glitter of green and golden wonder in a vast edifice of stone and space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/yosemite-valley-to-me-is-always-a-sunrise-a-glitter-of-green-and/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [To visualize an image (in whole or in part) is to see clearly in the mind prior to exposure, a continuous projection from composing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/to-visualize-an-image-in-whole-or-in-part-is-to-see-clearly-in-the/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [To the vast majority of people a photograph is an image of something within their direct experience: a more-or-less factual reality. It is difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/to-the-vast-majority-of-people-a-photograph-is-an-image-of-something/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [Photograph not only what you see but also what you feel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/photograph-not-only-what-you-see-but-also-what-you-feel/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [“A great photograph is a full expression of what one feels about what is being photographed in the deepest sense and is thereby a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/a-great-photograph-is-a-full-expression-of-what-one-feels-about-what/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [To photograph truthfully and effectively is to see beneath the surfaces and record the qualities of nature and humanity which live or are latent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/to-photograph-truthfully-and-effectively-is-to-see-beneath-the/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [ The \[35mm\] camera is for life and for people, the swift and intense moments of life. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/the-35mm-camera-is-for-life-and-for-people-the-swift-and-intense/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) [Explore all 154 Ansel Adams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) ## More Creation quotes > [“am not suggesting that successes in academics, athletics, or vocation somehow stand outside God’s good plan. Learning and play are joys that God himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-paul-jones/am-not-suggesting-that-successes-in-academics-athletics-or-vocation/) [Timothy Paul Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-paul-jones/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-r-miller/) > [And wheresoever, in his rich creation, Sweet music breathes--in wave, or bird, or soul-- 'Tis but the faint and far reverberation Of that great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-sargent-osgood/and-wheresoever-in-his-rich-creation-sweet-music-breathes-in-wave-or/) [Frances Sargent Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-sargent-osgood/) > [I believe if there is a creator it will basically ask me two questions, how well did you enjoy my creation and what did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-victor-paskavich/i-believe-if-there-is-a-creator-it-will-basically-ask-me-two/) [Stanley Victor Paskavich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-victor-paskavich/) > [With no other choices open to us, we'd turned our gaze seaward. The oceans were our America: they reached farther than any prairie, untamed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carsten-jensen/with-no-other-choices-open-to-us-we-d-turned-our-gaze-seaward-the/) [Carsten Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carsten-jensen/) > [In the quiet moments of your day, what do you think and do? When you are with your Self and no one else, how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/in-the-quiet-moments-of-your-day-what-do-you-think-and-do-when-you/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [The creation lives as genesis beneath the visible surface of the work. All intelligent people see this after the fact, but only the creative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-creation-lives-as-genesis-beneath-the-visible-surface-of-the-work/) [Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/) > [When I was in my teens I had a series of intensely religious experiences. They deepened my sense of God as the creator of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-linzey/when-i-was-in-my-teens-i-had-a-series-of-intensely-religious/) [Andrew Linzey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-linzey/) > [If you are trying to live a life in accordance with the Bible, the concept and call to justice are inescapable. We do justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-trying-to-live-a-life-in-accordance-with-the-bible-the/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [I think that storytelling and creation are very close to what the center of what magic is about. I think not just for me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/i-think-that-storytelling-and-creation-are-very-close-to-what-the/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [To be part of the creation, I must act humbly. I'll take that over a goddess any day!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-o-hara/to-be-part-of-the-creation-i-must-act-humbly-i-ll-take-that-over-a/) [Maureen O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-o-hara/) > [The country of Iraq is somewhat of an artificial creation going back to colonial days. And so you have the Kurds and then the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-clapper/the-country-of-iraq-is-somewhat-of-an-artificial-creation-going-back/) [James Clapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-clapper/) [Browse all 5,225 Creation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have often thought that if photography were difficult in the true sense of the term-meaning that the creation of a simple photograph would entail as much time and effort as the production of a good watercolor or etching-there would be a vast improvement in total output. 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