--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The thing is that when you don't carry a…" description: "\"The thing is that when you don't carry a camera, that's when you see pictures in particular, or at least that's when you think you see pictures in part..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/871/elliott-erwitt-8735_cameras_the-thing-is-that-when-you-don-t-carry-a_1220221.jpg" --- # The thing is that when you don't carry a camera, that's… ![“The thing is that when you don't carry a camera, that's when you see pictures in particular, or at least that's when you think you see pictures in particular. When you do carry it, if you do see one on the occasion that you do, you can take it.” quote by Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/871/elliott-erwitt-8735_cameras_the-thing-is-that-when-you-don-t-carry-a_1220221.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/871/elliott-erwitt-8735_cameras_the-thing-is-that-when-you-don-t-carry-a_1220221.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/871/elliott-erwitt-8735_cameras_the-thing-is-that-when-you-don-t-carry-a_1220221.jpg) > “The thing is that when you don't carry a camera, that's when you see pictures in particular, or at least that's when you think you see pictures in particular. When you do carry it, if you do see one on the occasion that you do, you can take it.” [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Without a camera, we imagine images; with a camera, we can capture them, highlighting perception versus reality. **In simple terms:** Imagining vs. capturing photos differ. Key Takeaway Recognize the gap between expectation and observation. Themes photography perception reality imagination Mood reflective inquisitive Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - travel photography - street photography - documentary work Key Concepts visual cognition mindfulness artistic intent Questions to Reflect On - How does expectation shape what we notice? - When does a camera change our experience? A Different Perspective Relying on imagination may lead to misinterpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Camera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/camera/) [Cameras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras/) [Occasions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/occasions/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Nothing happens when you sit at home. I always make it a point to carry a camera with me at all times...I just shoot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/nothing-happens-when-you-sit-at-home-i-always-make-it-a-point-to/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [I don't really have a favorite camera. I use a Leica and Canon a lot. It depends, especially professionally, on the requirements. But my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/i-don-t-really-have-a-favorite-camera-i-use-a-leica-and-canon-a-lot/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [You don't have to pose your camera. The pictures are there, and you just take them. The truth is the best picture, the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-capa/you-don-t-have-to-pose-your-camera-the-pictures-are-there-and-you/) [Robert Capa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-capa/) > [I don’t have a philosophy. I have a camera. I look into the camera and take pictures. My photographs are the tiniest part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-leiter/i-don-t-have-a-philosophy-i-have-a-camera-i-look-into-the-camera-and/) [Saul Leiter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-leiter/) > [I always carry a camera because it is so important to me to take pictures and document all the incredible things and places I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karlie-kloss/i-always-carry-a-camera-because-it-is-so-important-to-me-to-take/) [Karlie Kloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karlie-kloss/) > [Always carry a camera, it's tough to shoot a picture without one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-maisel/always-carry-a-camera-it-s-tough-to-shoot-a-picture-without-one/) [Jay Maisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-maisel/) > [I don't click pictures. People carry a camera with them while travelling, take pictures, keep them as memories, but I don't. I don't even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kaif/i-don-t-click-pictures-people-carry-a-camera-with-them-while/) [Katrina Kaif](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kaif/) > [I always carry my camera with me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-karp/i-always-carry-my-camera-with-me/) [David Karp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-karp/) > [One of my passions is photography. I always carry a camera in my bag whenever I travel. I always take pictures wherever I go,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunidhi-chauhan/one-of-my-passions-is-photography-i-always-carry-a-camera-in-my-bag/) [Sunidhi Chauhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunidhi-chauhan/) > [Look, I really do not care about you. What I care about is the worlds that you bear witness to. You are nothing more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lesy/look-i-really-do-not-care-about-you-what-i-care-about-is-the-worlds/) [Michael Lesy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lesy/) > [I carry my camera with me everywhere. I'm a vlogger!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jojo-siwa/i-carry-my-camera-with-me-everywhere-i-m-a-vlogger/) [JoJo Siwa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jojo-siwa/) > [I tend to always carry a camera with me. I live next to a fire station, and I've got lots of photos of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-bell/i-tend-to-always-carry-a-camera-with-me-i-live-next-to-a-fire-station/) [Gordon Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-bell/) > [Now everyone's main objective of taking photographs is to have a photograph for Twitter or Facebook. I find that troubling. If you have an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xaviera-simmons/now-everyone-s-main-objective-of-taking-photographs-is-to-have-a/) [Xaviera Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xaviera-simmons/) > [Unfortunately, I'm not one of those people who take pictures, you know, carry a camera. Because if I did I'd have stack's and stack's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-starr/unfortunately-i-m-not-one-of-those-people-who-take-pictures-you-know/) [Edwin Starr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-starr/) > [Sometimes I think all my pictures are just pictures of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-avedon/sometimes-i-think-all-my-pictures-are-just-pictures-of-me/) [Richard Avedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-avedon/) ## More by Elliott Erwitt > [Nothing happens when you sit at home. I always make it a point to carry a camera with me at all times...I just shoot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/nothing-happens-when-you-sit-at-home-i-always-make-it-a-point-to/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [Photoshop is useful in many ways but must NEVER be used for the altering of photographs. My assistants and my agency do whatever Photoshop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/photoshop-is-useful-in-many-ways-but-must-never-be-used-for-the/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [I don't really have a favorite camera. I use a Leica and Canon a lot. It depends, especially professionally, on the requirements. But my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/i-don-t-really-have-a-favorite-camera-i-use-a-leica-and-canon-a-lot/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [Do what the client wants, not what you want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/do-what-the-client-wants-not-what-you-want/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [It's just seeing - at least the photography I care about. You either see or you don't see. The rest is academic. Anyone can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/it-s-just-seeing-at-least-the-photography-i-care-about-you-either-see/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [Photography is pretty simple stuff. 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To take it beyond the craft is something else. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/photography-is-a-craft-anyone-can-learn-a-craft-with-normal/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [I see no difference between my pictures that people consider amusing and the rest. To me, it's all serious work - they're just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/i-see-no-difference-between-my-pictures-that-people-consider-amusing/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [My life has been quite interesting professionally,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/my-life-has-been-quite-interesting-professionally/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [Good photography is not about Zone Printing or any other Ansel Adams nonsense. It's just about seeing. You either see or you don't see.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/good-photography-is-not-about-zone-printing-or-any-other-ansel-adams/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [Professionally I've evolved with what's required, but the pictures I do for pleasure haven't changed, except for the cars in the background, the clothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/professionally-i-ve-evolved-with-what-s-required-but-the-pictures-i/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [Making people laugh is one of the highest achievements you can have. And when you can make someone laugh and cry, alternatively, as Chaplin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/making-people-laugh-is-one-of-the-highest-achievements-you-can-have/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [You can find pictures anywhere. It's simply a matter of noticing things and organizing them. You just have to care about what's around you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/you-can-find-pictures-anywhere-it-s-simply-a-matter-of-noticing/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) [Explore all 78 Elliott Erwitt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) ## 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 > [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": "The thing is that when you don't carry a camera, that's when you see pictures in particular, or at least that's when you think you see pictures in particular. 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