--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Photography sees surfaces, it doesn't see…" description: "\"Photography sees surfaces, it doesn't see space. We see space but the camera doesn't.\" — David Hockney" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b72/david-hockney-1395_camera_photography-sees-surfaces-it-doesn-t-see_3046316.png" --- # Photography sees surfaces, it doesn't see space. We see… ![“Photography sees surfaces, it doesn't see space. We see space but the camera doesn't.” quote by David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b72/david-hockney-1395_camera_photography-sees-surfaces-it-doesn-t-see_3046316.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b72/david-hockney-1395_camera_photography-sees-surfaces-it-doesn-t-see_3046316.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b72/david-hockney-1395_camera_photography-sees-surfaces-it-doesn-t-see_3046316.png) > “Photography sees surfaces, it doesn't see space. We see space but the camera doesn't.” [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Photography captures surfaces but not depth; artists must imagine beyond the frame. **In simple terms:** Photography shows surface, not depth. Key Takeaway Look beyond what is shown. Themes photography perception depth artistic vision Mood curious analytical Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - gallery curation - visual storytelling - design thinking Key Concepts visual theory cognitive perception creative imagination Questions to Reflect On - How do you perceive depth beyond images? - What techniques reveal hidden layers? A Different Perspective Surface focus can limit understanding. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Camera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/camera/) [Camera Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/camera-doesn-1342476/) [Cameras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Photography Sees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography-sees-5046119/) [Sees Surfaces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sees-surfaces-1025173/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Space Camera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space-camera-5046120/) [Surface](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surface/) ## Related quotes > [The camera can't see space. It sees surfaces. People see space, which is much more interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/the-camera-can-t-see-space-it-sees-surfaces-people-see-space-which-is/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [Just because you're the person on camera, doesn't mean you don't have something to contribute behind the camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-everett/just-because-you-re-the-person-on-camera-doesn-t-mean-you-don-t-have/) [Bridget Everett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-everett/) > [If I stand correctly in the mirror I can frame it so that I still have hair. But the camera doesn't lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-whitehouse/if-i-stand-correctly-in-the-mirror-i-can-frame-it-so-that-i-still/) [Paul Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-whitehouse/) > [I know it's not particularly tech-savvy of me to suggest a camera that doesn't have a touchscreen, but I think when it comes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-blasberg/i-know-it-s-not-particularly-tech-savvy-of-me-to-suggest-a-camera/) [Derek Blasberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-blasberg/) > [To make things just that much more interesting, the changes can't be captured on camera, so anyone who doesn't see them firsthand thinks it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenna-black/to-make-things-just-that-much-more-interesting-the-changes-can-t-be/) [Jenna Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenna-black/) > [“stats say relationships decline when a baby’s in the picture but the truth is, if the camera doesn’t take good pictures now, the pictures…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xayaat-muhummed/stats-say-relationships-decline-when-a-baby-s-in-the-picture-but-the/) [Xayaat Muhummed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xayaat-muhummed/) > [The cinema is a very truthful medium because the camera doesn't let you get away with anything. On stage, you can even loaf a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dean/the-cinema-is-a-very-truthful-medium-because-the-camera-doesn-t-let/) [James Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dean/) > [The camera doesn't make you a better person, it doesn't even change the person that you are, it just magnifies who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-harrison/the-camera-doesn-t-make-you-a-better-person-it-doesn-t-even-change/) [Chris Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-harrison/) > [Owning a camera doesn't make you a photographer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/owning-a-camera-doesn-t-make-you-a-photographer/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I have a theory that the only way you can be any good is if the camera likes you. If the camera doesn't like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hawks/i-have-a-theory-that-the-only-way-you-can-be-any-good-is-if-the/) [Howard Hawks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hawks/) > [If you're not being yourself, it shows immediately. The camera doesn't lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mischa-barton/if-you-re-not-being-yourself-it-shows-immediately-the-camera-doesn-t/) [Mischa Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mischa-barton/) > [If you push in every time there's a big moment, then the tenth time you push in, you're not going to get the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annette-bening/if-you-push-in-every-time-there-s-a-big-moment-then-the-tenth-time/) [Annette Bening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annette-bening/) > [Just because you have a camera doesn't make you a photographer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/just-because-you-have-a-camera-doesn-t-make-you-a-photographer/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The equation I share with the camera doesn't change whether you place a camera in front of me or a live audience. Just the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushant-singh-rajput/the-equation-i-share-with-the-camera-doesn-t-change-whether-you-place/) [Sushant Singh Rajput](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushant-singh-rajput/) > [In a drama, the camera doesn't exist. In a documentary, it does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gareth-edwards/in-a-drama-the-camera-doesn-t-exist-in-a-documentary-it-does/) [Gareth Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gareth-edwards/) ## More by David Hockney > [ You can't believe any picture nowadays, if it's digital. You can't really believe. If you see me shaking hands with Mr. \[Barack\] Obama, it… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/you-can-t-believe-any-picture-nowadays-if-it-s-digital-you-can-t/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [I had always planned to make a large painting of the early spring, when the first leaves are at the bottom of the trees,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/i-had-always-planned-to-make-a-large-painting-of-the-early-spring/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [I've always said that the only thing a photograph is good at capturing faithfully is another flat surface.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/i-ve-always-said-that-the-only-thing-a-photograph-is-good-at/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [I'm rather shocked by what I thought was simple mindedness actually. I thought they're not looking, they're not actually looking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/i-m-rather-shocked-by-what-i-thought-was-simple-mindedness-actually-i/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [You would think death was an optional extra nowadays. Nobody wants to tick that box.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/you-would-think-death-was-an-optional-extra-nowadays-nobody-wants-to/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [I live wherever I happen to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/i-live-wherever-i-happen-to-be/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [Until I saw my drawings replayed on the iPad, I'd never seen myself draw. Someone watching me would be concentrating on the exact moment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/until-i-saw-my-drawings-replayed-on-the-ipad-i-d-never-seen-myself/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [You always need a bit of low-tech.You always need a pair of scissors, it seems to me. You can do better things… The high-tech,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/you-always-need-a-bit-of-low-tech-you-always-need-a-pair-of-scissors/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [When you are older, you realise that everything else is just nothing compared to painting and drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/when-you-are-older-you-realise-that-everything-else-is-just-nothing/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [The photograph isn't good enough. It's not real enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/the-photograph-isn-t-good-enough-it-s-not-real-enough/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [In fact, I'm a bit of a slob, but I've always said my excuse, I have a higher sense of order, I can see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/in-fact-i-m-a-bit-of-a-slob-but-i-ve-always-said-my-excuse-i-have-a/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [Spring is very energising to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/spring-is-very-energising-to-me/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [No theoretician, no writer on art, however interesting he or she might be, could be as interesting as Picasso. A good writer on art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/no-theoretician-no-writer-on-art-however-interesting-he-or-she-might/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [How difficult it is to learn not to see like cameras, which has had such an effect on us. The camera sees everything at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/how-difficult-it-is-to-learn-not-to-see-like-cameras-which-has-had/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [With chemical film, it was possible to alter photographs, but you had to be an expert. That's not true any more. The LA Times…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/with-chemical-film-it-was-possible-to-alter-photographs-but-you-had/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) [Explore all 247 David Hockney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) ## More Camera quotes > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I have a way to photograph. You work with space, you have a camera, you have a frame, and then a fraction of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastiao-salgado/i-have-a-way-to-photograph-you-work-with-space-you-have-a-camera-you/) [Sebastiao Salgado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastiao-salgado/) > [I started off as a model maker, so the first part of my career was a model maker and then a motion control camera…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-knoll/i-started-off-as-a-model-maker-so-the-first-part-of-my-career-was-a/) [John Knoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-knoll/) > [When I made my debut as an actor in 'Rock On!' I was confident to get in front of the camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/farhan-akhtar/when-i-made-my-debut-as-an-actor-in-rock-on-i-was-confident-to-get-in/) [Farhan Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/farhan-akhtar/) > [Since a camera is something too heavy for women and initially made for men, you need a good cameraman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitra-farahani/since-a-camera-is-something-too-heavy-for-women-and-initially-made/) [Mitra Farahani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitra-farahani/) > [To be honest, I don't know... something about the camera like turns me into such a diva. Like when it's on and I see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bretman-rock/to-be-honest-i-don-t-know-something-about-the-camera-like-turns-me/) [Bretman Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bretman-rock/) > [When the camera is on, I am an actor; otherwise, I am an ordinary person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nana-patekar/when-the-camera-is-on-i-am-an-actor-otherwise-i-am-an-ordinary-person/) [Nana Patekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nana-patekar/) > [“A camera is an opening in a box: that is the best emblem of the fact that a camera holding an object is holding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-cavell/a-camera-is-an-opening-in-a-box-that-is-the-best-emblem-of-the-fact/) [Stanley Cavell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-cavell/) > [It's such a weird thing, because you have a whole crew of people standing over there, on the other side. There's a camera pointing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-faist/it-s-such-a-weird-thing-because-you-have-a-whole-crew-of-people/) [Mike Faist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-faist/) > [“The camera lets me see things in a different way. It's like I finally have perspective. I can't always say stuff right in words.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eileen-cook/the-camera-lets-me-see-things-in-a-different-way-it-s-like-i-finally/) [Eileen Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eileen-cook/) > [I was so green, and my background was mostly in theater. The only thing I'd done in front of a camera, besides an infomercial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-britton/i-was-so-green-and-my-background-was-mostly-in-theater-the-only-thing/) [Connie Britton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-britton/) > [As far as lighting and blocking, camera angles and facial expressions, all that stuff that has to be very specific in film, as opposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-torres/as-far-as-lighting-and-blocking-camera-angles-and-facial-expressions/) [Eve Torres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-torres/) > [It is the photographer, not the camera, that is the instrument.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-the-photographer-not-the-camera-that-is-the-instrument/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't like to move the camera that much anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-tucci/i-don-t-like-to-move-the-camera-that-much-anyway/) [Stanley Tucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-tucci/) > [I feel like 'Preacher's Daughter' was my Trojan horse, in a way. I'm excited to pull back, be behind the camera instead of in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-cain/i-feel-like-preacher-s-daughter-was-my-trojan-horse-in-a-way-i-m/) [Ethel Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-cain/) [Browse all 2,026 Camera quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/camera/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Photography sees surfaces, it doesn't see space. 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