--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A photograph records both the thing in…" description: "\"A photograph records both the thing in front of the camera and the conditions of its making... A photograph is also a document of the state of mind of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2c/james-welling-56713_arguing_a-photograph-records-both-the-thing-in-f_2977928.jpg" --- # A photograph records both the thing in front of the camera… ![“A photograph records both the thing in front of the camera and the conditions of its making... A photograph is also a document of the state of mind of the photographer. And if you were to extend the idea of the set-up photograph beyond just physically setting up the picture, I would argue that the…” quote by James Welling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2c/james-welling-56713_arguing_a-photograph-records-both-the-thing-in-f_2977928.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2c/james-welling-56713_arguing_a-photograph-records-both-the-thing-in-f_2977928.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2c/james-welling-56713_arguing_a-photograph-records-both-the-thing-in-f_2977928.jpg) > “A photograph records both the thing in front of the camera and the conditions of its making... A photograph is also a document of the state of mind of the photographer. And if you were to extend the idea of the set-up photograph beyond just physically setting up the picture, I would argue that the photographer wills the picture into being.” [James Welling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-welling/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A photograph captures both the subject and the photographer’s mindset, implying intentionality behind the image’s creation. **In simple terms:** Photos show subject and photographer’s state of mind. Key Takeaway Be aware of your intent when creating images. Themes photography artistic intent documentary subjectivity creative process Mood thoughtful creative Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - portrait sessions - journalistic coverage - personal projects Key Concepts visual semiotics authorial intent contextual framing Questions to Reflect On - How does your mood affect your photography? - What choices convey your intended message? A Different Perspective Technical constraints can limit expression despite intent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cameras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Photographer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographer/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Setting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/setting/) [State of mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/state-of-mind/) ## Related quotes > [What if I said that every photograph I made was set up? From the photograph, you can't prove otherwise. You don't know anything from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-winogrand/what-if-i-said-that-every-photograph-i-made-was-set-up-from-the/) [Garry Winogrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-winogrand/) > [The act of making a photograph is less a question of what is being looked at than how.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-act-of-making-a-photograph-is-less-a-question-of-what-is-being/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [The business of making a photograph may be said in simple terms to consist of three elements: the objective world (whose permanent condition is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-siskind/the-business-of-making-a-photograph-may-be-said-in-simple-terms-to/) [Aaron Siskind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-siskind/) > [There is a great difference between shooting a photograph and making a photograph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-heinecken/there-is-a-great-difference-between-shooting-a-photograph-and-making/) [Robert Heinecken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-heinecken/) > [Many pictures turn out to be limp translations of the known world instead of vital objects which create an intrinsic world of their own.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-heinecken/many-pictures-turn-out-to-be-limp-translations-of-the-known-world/) [Robert Heinecken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-heinecken/) > [For me, making a photograph is mostly an intellectual process of understanding people or cities and their historical and phenomenological connections. At that point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-struth/for-me-making-a-photograph-is-mostly-an-intellectual-process-of/) [Thomas Struth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-struth/) > [There is a vast difference between taking a picture and making a photograph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-heinecken/there-is-a-vast-difference-between-taking-a-picture-and-making-a/) [Robert Heinecken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-heinecken/) > [I have a terror of things being nice and knowing what to expect. Making a photograph is a license to have experiences that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-grannan/i-have-a-terror-of-things-being-nice-and-knowing-what-to-expect/) Katy Grannan > [I doubt there's any government in the world that guides itself primarily by strategy or conceptual documents or worldview. Anybody who has the reins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-doubt-there-s-any-government-in-the-world-that-guides-itself/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [In Saudi Arabia, among other countries, Muslims are not free to convert to Christianity, and Christians are not free to practice their faith. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-warraq/in-saudi-arabia-among-other-countries-muslims-are-not-free-to-convert/) [Ibn Warraq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibn-warraq/) > [Records used to be documents, but now record companies want product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-getz/records-used-to-be-documents-but-now-record-companies-want-product/) [Stan Getz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-getz/) > [It's not coincidence that these attacks come at the exact same moment, and all together at the same time as WikiLeaks releases documents exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/it-s-not-coincidence-that-these-attacks-come-at-the-exact-same-moment/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [There's a story about how the program is organized, there's a story about the context in which the program is expected to operate. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-steele/there-s-a-story-about-how-the-program-is-organized-there-s-a-story/) [Guy Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-steele/) > [Joel Lane documents a life we don’t quite live, in a city we can’t quite find: half glimpsed and half imagined, we know it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaz-brenchley/joel-lane-documents-a-life-we-don-t-quite-live-in-a-city-we-can-t/) Chaz Brenchley > [We released 400,000 classified documents, the most extraordinary history of a war to ever have been released in our civilization. Those documents cover 109,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/we-released-400-000-classified-documents-the-most-extraordinary/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) ## More by James Welling > [ \[Photography\] underlines the photographer. That's the Barthesian this has been. Well, this has been for the photographer as well. The photographer is the hidden… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-welling/photography-underlines-the-photographer-that-s-the-barthesian-this/) [James Welling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-welling/) > [It's not that I don't care about content, but content is not the only way a photograph has meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-welling/it-s-not-that-i-don-t-care-about-content-but-content-is-not-the-only/) [James Welling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-welling/) > [There is a narrative behind every image. I often imagine being able to see the photographer standing behind the camera, or perhaps crouching or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-welling/there-is-a-narrative-behind-every-image-i-often-imagine-being-able-to/) [James Welling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-welling/) > [ Even an ugly, abject photograph bears the recording of its making... my goal \[is\] to create dense objects, works in which many lines of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-welling/even-an-ugly-abject-photograph-bears-the-recording-of-its-making-my/) [James Welling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-welling/) > [... I began showing the black border of the negative as part of the image, something I'd never done before. I began to realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-welling/i-began-showing-the-black-border-of-the-negative-as-part-of-the-image/) [James Welling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-welling/) [Explore all 6 James Welling quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-welling/) ## More Arguing quotes > [I do wish you wouldn't argue with me when I'm knitting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-durrell/i-do-wish-you-wouldn-t-argue-with-me-when-i-m-knitting/) [Gerald Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-durrell/) > [Any comprehensive doctrine, religious or secular, can be introduced into any political argument at any time, but I argue that people who do this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/any-comprehensive-doctrine-religious-or-secular-can-be-introduced/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [It's fine to talk about politics with people you agree with. But it is rude to argue about politics with people you disagree with.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/it-s-fine-to-talk-about-politics-with-people-you-agree-with-but-it-is/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [Men are fair, and they have learned not to personalize anger - they can disagree with you and argue to the bone, but afterward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-farrell/men-are-fair-and-they-have-learned-not-to-personalize-anger-they-can/) [Warren Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-farrell/) > [When Eudæmonidas heard a philosopher arguing that only a wise man can be a good general, "This is a wonderful speech," said he; "but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/when-eud-monidas-heard-a-philosopher-arguing-that-only-a-wise-man-can/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [Fasting is required, staying away from fighting and arguing and bombing of masjids is still going on. Hatred is still manifested between Sunni and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-farrakhan/fasting-is-required-staying-away-from-fighting-and-arguing-and/) [Louis Farrakhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-farrakhan/) > [The problem for the Left, however, is that the moment it stops painting the Right as vile, it has to argue the issues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/the-problem-for-the-left-however-is-that-the-moment-it-stops-painting/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) > [To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/to-argue-with-a-person-who-has-renounced-the-use-of-reason-is-like/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [You can argue that the Terminator movies reboot their world each time they go back in time, but that doesn't negate the value of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hayter/you-can-argue-that-the-terminator-movies-reboot-their-world-each-time/) [David Hayter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hayter/) > [We may argue eloquently that 'Honesty is the best Policy' - unfortunately, the moment honesty is adopted for the sake of policy it mysteriously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/we-may-argue-eloquently-that-honesty-is-the-best-policy-unfortunately/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [I'm a very serious person, but I don't take myself very seriously and I would rather laugh all day than argue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stone-cold-steve-austin/i-m-a-very-serious-person-but-i-don-t-take-myself-very-seriously-and/) [Stone Cold Steve Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stone-cold-steve-austin/) > [These eyes, tho' clear To outward view of blemish or of spot, Bereft of light, their seeing have forgot, Nor to their idle orbs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/these-eyes-tho-clear-to-outward-view-of-blemish-or-of-spot-bereft-of/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [There's crucial distinction that has to be drawn between the Shari'a, which is this hugely expansive vision of cosmic order that I've been describing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadakat-kadri/there-s-crucial-distinction-that-has-to-be-drawn-between-the-shari-a/) [Sadakat Kadri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadakat-kadri/) > [Only fools argue whether to eat meat or not. They don't understand truth nor do they meditate on it. Who can define what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guru-nanak/only-fools-argue-whether-to-eat-meat-or-not-they-don-t-understand/) [Guru Nanak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guru-nanak/) > [The surest sign that you haven't any sense is to argue with one who hasn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-j-peter/the-surest-sign-that-you-haven-t-any-sense-is-to-argue-with-one-who/) [Laurence J. Peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-j-peter/) Browse all 1,908 Arguing quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A photograph records both the thing in front of the camera and the conditions of its making... A photograph is also a document of the state of mind of the photographer. 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