--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He tends to trust pictures more than he…" description: "\"“He tends to trust pictures more than he trusts words. Not because pictures cannot lie but because, once they leave the darkroom, they are fixed, immut..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffb/j-m-coetzee-2457_photography_he-tends-to-trust-pictures-more-than-he_2065310.png" --- # He tends to trust pictures more than he trusts words. Not… ![“He tends to trust pictures more than he trusts words. Not because pictures cannot lie but because, once they leave the darkroom, they are fixed, immutable.” quote by J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffb/j-m-coetzee-2457_photography_he-tends-to-trust-pictures-more-than-he_2065310.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffb/j-m-coetzee-2457_photography_he-tends-to-trust-pictures-more-than-he_2065310.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffb/j-m-coetzee-2457_photography_he-tends-to-trust-pictures-more-than-he_2065310.png) > ““He tends to trust pictures more than he trusts words. Not because pictures cannot lie but because, once they leave the darkroom, they are fixed, immutable.”” [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Images are perceived as more reliable than words because they appear unchangeable, though they can still be deceptive. **In simple terms:** Pictures seem trustworthy because they look fixed. Key Takeaway Question visual evidence critically. Themes trust perception truth media art philosophy Mood skeptical analytical Type critical observational When to use this quote - advertising analysis - journalistic reporting - art criticism - personal decision making - education Key Concepts Epistemology visual rhetoric media literacy Questions to Reflect On - How do you verify the authenticity of an image? - When might words be more reliable than pictures? A Different Perspective Visuals can be manipulated after creation, undermining their perceived immutability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Darkroom Fixed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkroom-fixed-3960571/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Pictures Lie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pictures-lie-2116408/) [Pictures Trusts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pictures-trusts-3960570/) [Tends Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tends-trust-3960572/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) [Trust Pictures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust-pictures-465980/) ## Related quotes > [I don't trust words. I trust pictures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilles-peress/i-don-t-trust-words-i-trust-pictures/) [Gilles Peress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilles-peress/) > [ People are much more willing nowadays to believe that pictures lie than \[that\] they can express any kind of truth. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-simmons/people-are-much-more-willing-nowadays-to-believe-that-pictures-lie/) [Laurie Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-simmons/) > [The pictures do not lie, but neither do they tell the whole story. They are merely a record of time passing, the outward evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/the-pictures-do-not-lie-but-neither-do-they-tell-the-whole-story-they/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [I trust pictures, but no pictures made in my world - because I know what goes on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-campbell/i-trust-pictures-but-no-pictures-made-in-my-world-because-i-know-what/) [Naomi Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-campbell/) > [“But any picture could deal with the problem of light. The problem with this picture is greater than that of reflective surfaces - it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-otto/but-any-picture-could-deal-with-the-problem-of-light-the-problem-with/) [Whitney Otto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-otto/) > [I have a way to photograph. 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Danforth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-m-danforth/) > [To an ever greater extent out experience is governed by pictures, pictures in newspapers and magazines, on television and in the cinema. Next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-crimp/to-an-ever-greater-extent-out-experience-is-governed-by-pictures/) [Douglas Crimp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-crimp/) > [“She realized that the photograph had caused his reaction. It came to her almost as a revelation. 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Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [If you want to edit your photos and make yourself look different, go for it. That is up to you, but in my opinion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-list/if-you-want-to-edit-your-photos-and-make-yourself-look-different-go/) [Peyton List](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-list/) ## More by J.M. Coetzee > [“I urge you: don't cut short these thought-trains of yours. Follow them through to their end. Your thoughts and your feelings. Follow them through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/i-urge-you-don-t-cut-short-these-thought-trains-of-yours-follow-them/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“I truly believe I am not afraid of death. What I shrink from, I believe, is the shame of dying as stupid and befuddled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/i-truly-believe-i-am-not-afraid-of-death-what-i-shrink-from-i-believe/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“Technically he is old enough to be her father; but then, technically one can be a father at twelve.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/technically-he-is-old-enough-to-be-her-father-but-then-technically/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“I remember asking John, after Dusklands, what new project he had on the go. His answer was vague. 'There is always something or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/i-remember-asking-john-after-dusklands-what-new-project-he-had-on-the/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“The truth is, he tired of criticism, tired of prose measured by the yard." --Disgrace”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/the-truth-is-he-tired-of-criticism-tired-of-prose-measured-by-the/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“Since I was in flight from religion, I assumed that my classmates had to be in flight from religion too, albeit in a quieter,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/since-i-was-in-flight-from-religion-i-assumed-that-my-classmates-had/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“Lucy was frightened, frightened near to death. Her voice choked, she could not breath, her limbs went numb. "This is not happening", she said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/lucy-was-frightened-frightened-near-to-death-her-voice-choked-she/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“It occurs to me that we crush insects beneath our feet, miracles of creation too, beetles, worms, cockroaches, ants, in their various ways.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/it-occurs-to-me-that-we-crush-insects-beneath-our-feet-miracles-of/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“He sits with the pen in his hand, holding himself back from a descent into representations that have no place in the world, on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/he-sits-with-the-pen-in-his-hand-holding-himself-back-from-a-descent/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“Do you remember Vlek, who was such a good sheepdog that she and Jakob alone could drive a whole flock past you at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/do-you-remember-vlek-who-was-such-a-good-sheepdog-that-she-and-jakob/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“We are accustomed to believe that our world was created by God speaking the Word; but I ask, may it not rather be that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/we-are-accustomed-to-believe-that-our-world-was-created-by-god/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“...from the oppression of such freedom who would not welcome the liberation of confinement?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/from-the-oppression-of-such-freedom-who-would-not-welcome-the/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“If he has a last thought, if there is time for a last thought, it will simply be, So this is what a last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/if-he-has-a-last-thought-if-there-is-time-for-a-last-thought-it-will/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“At what age , he wonders, did Origen castrate himself? Not the most graceful solution, but then ageing is not a graceful bussines.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/at-what-age-he-wonders-did-origen-castrate-himself-not-the-most/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“...he seems to be on the brink of one of his bad spells again, one of the fits of lugubrious self-pity that turn into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/he-seems-to-be-on-the-brink-of-one-of-his-bad-spells-again-one-of-the/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) [Explore all 122 J.M. Coetzee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) ## More Photography quotes > [If you want to edit your photos and make yourself look different, go for it. That is up to you, but in my opinion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-list/if-you-want-to-edit-your-photos-and-make-yourself-look-different-go/) [Peyton List](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-list/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [As far as Vern and I go, we have had situations where people have tried to take photographs of me and cut Vernon out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tess-daly/as-far-as-vern-and-i-go-we-have-had-situations-where-people-have/) [Tess Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tess-daly/) > [I always believed that photography was subjective, interpretive and certainly did not represent the truth, but I did think that its status as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-ritchin/i-always-believed-that-photography-was-subjective-interpretive-and/) [Fred Ritchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-ritchin/) > [One of the reasons that I do a lot of different kinds of pictures is because I learn a lot when I'm doing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-jason-leigh/one-of-the-reasons-that-i-do-a-lot-of-different-kinds-of-pictures-is/) [Jennifer Jason Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-jason-leigh/) > [“She realized that the photograph had caused his reaction. It came to her almost as a revelation. Think of it: a photographer presses a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soheir-khashoggi/she-realized-that-the-photograph-had-caused-his-reaction-it-came-to/) [Soheir Khashoggi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soheir-khashoggi/) > [To an ever greater extent out experience is governed by pictures, pictures in newspapers and magazines, on television and in the cinema. Next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-crimp/to-an-ever-greater-extent-out-experience-is-governed-by-pictures/) [Douglas Crimp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-crimp/) > [“Now there was photographic evidence of me with a girl. Lindsey pack the camera in her duffel while I contemplated the film inside it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-m-danforth/now-there-was-photographic-evidence-of-me-with-a-girl-lindsey-pack/) [Emily M. Danforth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-m-danforth/) > [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/) > [“But any picture could deal with the problem of light. The problem with this picture is greater than that of reflective surfaces - it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-otto/but-any-picture-could-deal-with-the-problem-of-light-the-problem-with/) [Whitney Otto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-otto/) > [All the pictures on the walls, they all white as lilies and smiling like alligators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/all-the-pictures-on-the-walls-they-all-white-as-lilies-and-smiling/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [ \[Photography is \] likewise even French impressionists. So the Sculls bought pop. It was politics, and they moved with it. And I think that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-winogrand/photography-is-likewise-even-french-impressionists-so-the-sculls/) [Garry Winogrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-winogrand/) > [I've always been interested in photographs, collecting them not systematically but randomly. They get lost, then turn up again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-g-sebald/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-photographs-collecting-them-not/) [W. G. Sebald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-g-sebald/) [Browse all 11,116 Photography quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He tends to trust pictures more than he trusts words. Not because pictures cannot lie but because, once they leave the darkroom, they are fixed, immutable.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "J.M. 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