--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This camera works like photosynthesis. It…" description: "\"This camera works like photosynthesis. It is as if you were Xeroxing your own face. The pictures have such physicality: their surface is like fine leat..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/julian-schnabel-9809_body_this-camera-works-like-photosynthesis-it_1417632.jpg" --- # This camera works like photosynthesis. It is as if you… ![“This camera works like photosynthesis. It is as if you were Xeroxing your own face. The pictures have such physicality: their surface is like fine leather, stained from chemicals. Each one has a body and is more than an image.” quote by Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/julian-schnabel-9809_body_this-camera-works-like-photosynthesis-it_1417632.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/julian-schnabel-9809_body_this-camera-works-like-photosynthesis-it_1417632.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/julian-schnabel-9809_body_this-camera-works-like-photosynthesis-it_1417632.jpg) > “This camera works like photosynthesis. It is as if you were Xeroxing your own face. The pictures have such physicality: their surface is like fine leather, stained from chemicals. Each one has a body and is more than an image.” [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Comparing camera photography to a living, tactile process that captures the essence of the subject. **In simple terms:** Photography as a living, tactile process. Key Takeaway Treat photos as physical extensions of reality. Themes art perception materiality Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - portrait sessions - exhibition prep - archival work Key Concepts photography material culture Questions to Reflect On - How does tangibility affect your view of images? - Can you see value in both digital and physical photos? A Different Perspective Physical focus may limit digital flexibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Camera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/camera/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/image/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Physicality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physicality/) ## Related quotes > [We can look at the way of improving the key biochemical processes like photosynthesis itself. A lot of energy is lost to keep the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-marie-lehn/we-can-look-at-the-way-of-improving-the-key-biochemical-processes/) [Jean-Marie Lehn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-marie-lehn/) > [If I find a comedy club where no one's camera works, I'll go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-rock/if-i-find-a-comedy-club-where-no-one-s-camera-works-i-ll-go/) [Chris Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-rock/) > [I invented a camera that has an exposure time of one hundred years and the camera works in the simplest possible terms, because anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathon-keats/i-invented-a-camera-that-has-an-exposure-time-of-one-hundred-years/) [Jonathon Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathon-keats/) > [The purest white seems stained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/the-purest-white-seems-stained/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [If a white cloth is stained even with a small spot, the stain appears very ugly indeed. So the smallest fault of a holy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramakrishna/if-a-white-cloth-is-stained-even-with-a-small-spot-the-stain-appears/) [Ramakrishna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramakrishna/) > [Personal sympathy has helped me on very much. My husband from first to last has watched every picture with delight, and it is my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-margaret-cameron/personal-sympathy-has-helped-me-on-very-much-my-husband-from-first-to/) [Julia Margaret Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-margaret-cameron/) > [The noblest character is stained by the addition of pride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudius-claudianus/the-noblest-character-is-stained-by-the-addition-of-pride/) [Claudius Claudianus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudius-claudianus/) > [If someone tests positive for coronavirus, our sport would be stained forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiki-bertens/if-someone-tests-positive-for-coronavirus-our-sport-would-be-stained/) [Kiki Bertens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiki-bertens/) > [Walking at random through the streets, we came by chance upon the Cathedral of Notre Dame. I shall long remember my first impression of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bayard-taylor/walking-at-random-through-the-streets-we-came-by-chance-upon-the/) [Bayard Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bayard-taylor/) > [Under the snowcapped mountains of Fiordland National Park, freshwater streams empty into the saltwater fiords, creating a unique ecosystem. This is a heavily wooded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-skerry/under-the-snowcapped-mountains-of-fiordland-national-park-freshwater/) [Brian Skerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-skerry/) > [Im stained all over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skin/im-stained-all-over/) [Skin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skin/) > [I used to go to Cold Stone Creamery, get a tub of Butterfinger ice cream, and eat it all before bedtime. And my fingers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanessa-hudgens/i-used-to-go-to-cold-stone-creamery-get-a-tub-of-butterfinger-ice/) [Vanessa Hudgens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanessa-hudgens/) > [A locked door, a rusty razor, a towel stained with red. A folded note, a broken mirror, and a young girl lays there dead.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-locked-door-a-rusty-razor-a-towel-stained-with-red-a-folded-note-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“When you truly love someone a part of you is stained in their Color. Their memories, their love, their mannerisms, their vocabulary it all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drishti-bablani/when-you-truly-love-someone-a-part-of-you-is-stained-in-their-color/) [Drishti Bablani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drishti-bablani/) > [We can today open wide the history of their administrations and point with pride to every act, and challenge the world to point out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-toombs/we-can-today-open-wide-the-history-of-their-administrations-and-point/) [Robert Toombs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-toombs/) ## More by Julian Schnabel > [I want the paintings to take me or the viewer out somewhere else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-want-the-paintings-to-take-me-or-the-viewer-out-somewhere-else/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I don't think my paintings are self-conscious but you feel the consciousness of them. Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [Maybe my work looks a little crazy, a little insane, but I don't really see myself as a crazy artist or a shaman artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/maybe-my-work-looks-a-little-crazy-a-little-insane-but-i-don-t-really/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I was always very... impatient about showing my paintings to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-was-always-very-impatient-about-showing-my-paintings-to-people/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I think beauty is a feeling that you get after you've had an experience. It's the way you feel about it that is beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-think-beauty-is-a-feeling-that-you-get-after-you-ve-had-an/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I wanted to show painting paintings first, then the plate paintings; now I can show that I've sort of freed myself from stylistic inhibitions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-wanted-to-show-painting-paintings-first-then-the-plate-paintings/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [Painting is like breathing to me. It’s what I do all the time. Every day I make art, whether it is painting, writing or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/painting-is-like-breathing-to-me-it-s-what-i-do-all-the-time-every/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [Sometimes I'll dream that I saw a show and then I'll wake up in the morning and realize that I didn't see the show,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/sometimes-i-ll-dream-that-i-saw-a-show-and-then-i-ll-wake-up-in-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [My early paintings weren't that good - I was very influenced by Francis Bacon. But there was a kind of intensity there. And however…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/my-early-paintings-weren-t-that-good-i-was-very-influenced-by-francis/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I don't know if I could, like, see a face and know what the face of beauty looks like, but after I've seen it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-know-if-i-could-like-see-a-face-and-know-what-the-face-of/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [Paintings are not like the Internet. They're not like movies. They're not electronic-friendly. You have to go see them. You have to stand in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/paintings-are-not-like-the-internet-they-re-not-like-movies-they-re/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [There's been too much attention on marketing. Can't we just talk about the paintings?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/there-s-been-too-much-attention-on-marketing-can-t-we-just-talk-about/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [When art is really great, it's really powerful, can really do something to you, make you feel more alive and make you feel more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/when-art-is-really-great-it-s-really-powerful-can-really-do-something/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [If I hung one of my paintings next to someone else's, I knew mine would kind of pop off the wall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/if-i-hung-one-of-my-paintings-next-to-someone-else-s-i-knew-mine/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [Traditionally, photography is supposed to capture an event that has passed; but that is not what I'm looking for. Photography brings the past into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/traditionally-photography-is-supposed-to-capture-an-event-that-has/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) [Explore all 70 Julian Schnabel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) ## More Body quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/) [Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) Jennifer Siebel Newsom > [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/) [Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) [Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "This camera works like photosynthesis. It is as if you were Xeroxing your own face. The pictures have such physicality: their surface is like fine leather, stained from chemicals. 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