--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know some photographs that are…" description: "\"I know some photographs that are extraodrinary in their power and conviction, but it is difficult in photography to overcome the superficial power or s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fdb/ansel-adams-2687_compelling_i-know-some-photographs-that-are-extraod_954826.jpg" --- # I know some photographs that are extraodrinary in their… ![“I know some photographs that are extraodrinary in their power and conviction, but it is difficult in photography to overcome the superficial power or subject; the concept and statement must be quite convincing in themselves to win over a dramatic and compelling subject situation.” quote by Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fdb/ansel-adams-2687_compelling_i-know-some-photographs-that-are-extraod_954826.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fdb/ansel-adams-2687_compelling_i-know-some-photographs-that-are-extraod_954826.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fdb/ansel-adams-2687_compelling_i-know-some-photographs-that-are-extraod_954826.jpg) > “I know some photographs that are extraodrinary in their power and conviction, but it is difficult in photography to overcome the superficial power or subject; the concept and statement must be quite convincing in themselves to win over a dramatic and compelling subject situation.” [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. Powerful photography must combine technical skill with a compelling concept, transcending superficial appeal to convey depth. **In simple terms:** Great photos need both technique and strong ideas. Key Takeaway Focus on concept as much as composition. Themes photography art creativity conceptual depth technical mastery Mood inspirational analytical educational Type interview instructional philosophical When to use this quote - planning a photo series - teaching a class - curating an exhibition - evaluating images - developing a portfolio Key Concepts visual storytelling aesthetic theory perception subjectivity Questions to Reflect On - What concept drives your visual work? - How can you deepen the story behind an image? A Different Perspective Technical skill alone may not engage viewers without a resonant narrative. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Compelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compelling/) [Concepts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concepts/) [Conviction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conviction/) [Convincing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convincing/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Difficult Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-photography-497611/) [Dramatic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dramatic/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Know Photographs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-photographs-518299/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Overcoming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overcoming/) [Photograph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photograph/) [Photographs Extraodrinary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographs-extraodrinary-1726640/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Photography Overcome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography-overcome-1726639/) [Situation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/situation/) [Statements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statements/) [Subjects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjects/) [Superficial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superficial/) [Superficial Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/superficial-power-1726641/) [Winning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winning/) ## Related quotes > [Words are difficult and photography takes the words away from things. It's difficult to talk about something that seems to come very naturally to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daria-werbowy/words-are-difficult-and-photography-takes-the-words-away-from-things/) [Daria Werbowy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daria-werbowy/) > [I was born on a tiny cot in southwestern Massachusetts during World War II. A sickly child, I turned to photography to overcome my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wegman/i-was-born-on-a-tiny-cot-in-southwestern-massachusetts-during-world/) [William Wegman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wegman/) > [But there is more to a fine photograph than information. We are also seeking to present an image that arouses the curiosity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-abell/but-there-is-more-to-a-fine-photograph-than-information-we-are-also/) [Sam Abell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-abell/) > [We pass the billboard and I console myself in two ways. First, I know that most photographs taken are a gamble at best. Second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-mcphee/we-pass-the-billboard-and-i-console-myself-in-two-ways-first-i-know/) [Laura McPhee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-mcphee/) > [We know that photographs inform people. We also know that photographs move people. The photograph that does both is the one we want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-abell/we-know-that-photographs-inform-people-we-also-know-that-photographs/) [Sam Abell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-abell/) > [When I learned that aliens really do exist, I wasn't too surprised. But what did shock me when I started investigating extra-terrestrial reports a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/when-i-learned-that-aliens-really-do-exist-i-wasn-t-too-surprised-but/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [While testimonies can come as dramatic manifestations, they usually do not. Sometimes people think they need to have an experience like Joseph Smith's vision…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-f-packer/while-testimonies-can-come-as-dramatic-manifestations-they-usually-do/) [Allan F. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-f-packer/) > [When you work with a good actor, there is this natural rapport and chemistry that develops over time. That chemistry helps your characters come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aamir-khan/when-you-work-with-a-good-actor-there-is-this-natural-rapport-and/) [Aamir Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aamir-khan/) > [You make a movie and it's like convincing people to go on an expedition with you. You think you know where it's going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ayer/you-make-a-movie-and-it-s-like-convincing-people-to-go-on-an/) [David Ayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ayer/) > [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/) > [“Trane's playing is literally the most convincing proof of God's existence I've ever come across.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/trane-s-playing-is-literally-the-most-convincing-proof-of-god-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Religious freedom is too sacred a right to be restricted or prohibited in any degree without convincing proof that a legitimate interest of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-murphy/religious-freedom-is-too-sacred-a-right-to-be-restricted-or/) [Frank Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-murphy/) > [Ultimately the most challenging thing, always, is to just be convincing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-pearce/ultimately-the-most-challenging-thing-always-is-to-just-be-convincing/) [Guy Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-pearce/) > [I don't analyze what I'm doing. I've read convincing interpretations of my work, and sometimes I've noticed something that I wasn't aware of, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-sherman/i-don-t-analyze-what-i-m-doing-i-ve-read-convincing-interpretations/) [Cindy Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-sherman/) > [How they say that we not fly, how they say that we not working. They just need convincing like Malcom Little fore he converted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wale/how-they-say-that-we-not-fly-how-they-say-that-we-not-working-they/) [Wale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wale/) ## 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/) > [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/i-have-often-thought-that-if-photography-were-difficult-in-the-true/) [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/) [Explore all 154 Ansel Adams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) ## More Compelling quotes > [In early drafts, one of the trickiest things for me to do was to realize that the techniques and devices that make readable and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/in-early-drafts-one-of-the-trickiest-things-for-me-to-do-was-to/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [In writing, I want to be remembered for telling good stories in beautiful and powerful language, using the poetry of words to reflect the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/in-writing-i-want-to-be-remembered-for-telling-good-stories-in/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [The epic poet has behind him a tradition of matter and a tradition of style; and that is what every other poet has behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/the-epic-poet-has-behind-him-a-tradition-of-matter-and-a-tradition-of/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [Lexicon grabbed me with the opening lines, and never let go. An absolutely thrilling story, featuring an array of compelling characters in an eerily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pavone/lexicon-grabbed-me-with-the-opening-lines-and-never-let-go-an/) [Chris Pavone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pavone/) > [For what higher, more exalted, and more compelling goal can there be than to know God?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-i-packer/for-what-higher-more-exalted-and-more-compelling-goal-can-there-be/) [J. I. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-i-packer/) > [I write what I like to read, and I enjoy love triangles in YA and adult fiction - not to mention in other media…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/i-write-what-i-like-to-read-and-i-enjoy-love-triangles-in-ya-and/) [Kresley Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/) > [Among the most compelling truths in some of the early photographs is their implication of silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-adams/among-the-most-compelling-truths-in-some-of-the-early-photographs-is/) [Robert Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-adams/) > [Michael Jackson is an extremely productive ethnographer, a serious reader of phenomenological and existential philosophy, and a remarkable writer at a level that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-kleinman/michael-jackson-is-an-extremely-productive-ethnographer-a-serious/) [Arthur Kleinman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-kleinman/) > [For me, being on set is no different than being at a dinner table or riding the subway next to someone; inevitably their life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-mahoney/for-me-being-on-set-is-no-different-than-being-at-a-dinner-table-or/) [Victoria Mahoney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-mahoney/) > [“…the excitement of doing something for the first time had passed. I laid there in the back seat looking at the moon. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hinton/the-excitement-of-doing-something-for-the-first-time-had-passed-i/) [Karen Hinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hinton/) > [My experience is that an original and compelling idea for a novel is a rare thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-thayer/my-experience-is-that-an-original-and-compelling-idea-for-a-novel-is/) [James Thayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-thayer/) > [Evil is relative - and what I mean by that is that our villains are as complex, as deep and as compelling as any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-johns/evil-is-relative-and-what-i-mean-by-that-is-that-our-villains-are-as/) [Geoff Johns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-johns/) > [The most compelling evidence for God's existence is Christ. 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