---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I say half jokingly that photography is…"
description: "\"I say half jokingly that photography is the most difficult of the arts. It does require a certain arrogance to see and to choose. I feel myself walking..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/walker-evans-14813_arrogance_i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is_3004432.png"
---

#  I say half jokingly that photography is the most difficult…

![“I say half jokingly that photography is the most difficult of the arts. It does require a certain arrogance to see and to choose. I feel myself walking on a tightrope instead of on the ground.” quote by Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/walker-evans-14813_arrogance_i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is_3004432.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/walker-evans-14813_arrogance_i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is_3004432.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/walker-evans-14813_arrogance_i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is_3004432.png)

> “I say half jokingly that photography is the most difficult of the arts. It does require a certain arrogance to see and to choose. I feel myself walking on a tightrope instead of on the ground.”

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Photography demands confidence and risk; the artist feels precarious yet daring.

**In simple terms:** Photography is bold and risky.

Key Takeaway

Embrace artistic daring.

Themes

art confidence risk

Mood

introspective inspirational

Type

quote philosophical

When to use this quote

- photo shoots
- exhibitions
- creative experiments

Key Concepts

creativity self‑expression

Questions to Reflect On

- What does confidence look like in your work?
- When does risk become reckless?

A Different Perspective

Risk may alienate audiences.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Arrogance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrogance/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Photographer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographer/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/)

## Related quotes

> [I have often thought that if photography were difficult in the true sense of the term-meaning that the creation of a simple photograph would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/i-have-often-thought-that-if-photography-were-difficult-in-the-true/)

[Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/)

> [Photography is not difficult - as long as you have something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-giacomelli/photography-is-not-difficult-as-long-as-you-have-something-to-say/)

[Mario Giacomelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-giacomelli/)

> [I find that when one has worked long enough, technical know-how becomes almost irrelevant. In photography, it's not difficult to reach a technical level…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-kenna/i-find-that-when-one-has-worked-long-enough-technical-know-how/)

[Michael Kenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-kenna/)

> [So many people seem to imagine that because the actual tools of writing are easily accessible, it is less difficult than the other arts.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-brittain/so-many-people-seem-to-imagine-that-because-the-actual-tools-of/)

[Vera Brittain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-brittain/)

> [To speak the truth is the most difficult of all arts, for in its "pure" form, not connected with the interests of individuals, groups,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxim-gorky/to-speak-the-truth-is-the-most-difficult-of-all-arts-for-in-its-pure/)

[Maxim Gorky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxim-gorky/)

> [Drama is the most difficult of all arts. In it two things are to be satisfied - first, the ears, and second, the eyes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/drama-is-the-most-difficult-of-all-arts-in-it-two-things-are-to-be/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [Changing the subject is one of the most difficult arts to master, the key to almost all the others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-sar-aira/changing-the-subject-is-one-of-the-most-difficult-arts-to-master-the/)

[Cesar Aira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-sar-aira/)

> [Leaving aside the mysteries and the inequities of human talent, brains, taste, and reputations, the matter of art in photography may come down to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/leaving-aside-the-mysteries-and-the-inequities-of-human-talent-brains/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [Documentary: That’s a sophisticated and misleading word. And not really clear… The term should be documentary style… You see, a document has use, whereas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/documentary-that-s-a-sophisticated-and-misleading-word-and-not-really/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [I think there is a period of esthetic discovery that happens to a man and he can do all sorts of things at white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-think-there-is-a-period-of-esthetic-discovery-that-happens-to-a-man/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [Photography is not cute cats, nor nudes, motherhood or arrangements of manufactured products. Under no circumstances it is anything ever anywhere near a beach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/photography-is-not-cute-cats-nor-nudes-motherhood-or-arrangements-of/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [ What I believe is really good in the so-called documentary approach to photography is the addition of lyricism.\[this quality\] is usually produced unconsciously and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/what-i-believe-is-really-good-in-the-so-called-documentary-approach/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [Privilege, if you're very strict, is an immoral and unjust thing to have, but if you've got it you didn't choose to get it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/privilege-if-you-re-very-strict-is-an-immoral-and-unjust-thing-to/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [I'm sometimes called a 'documentary photographer' but... a man operating under that definition could take a sly pleasure in the disguise. Very often I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-m-sometimes-called-a-documentary-photographer-but-a-man-operating/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/)

[Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/)

## More by Walker Evans

> [I'm sometimes called a 'documentary photographer' but... a man operating under that definition could take a sly pleasure in the disguise. Very often I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-m-sometimes-called-a-documentary-photographer-but-a-man-operating/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [Privilege, if you're very strict, is an immoral and unjust thing to have, but if you've got it you didn't choose to get it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/privilege-if-you-re-very-strict-is-an-immoral-and-unjust-thing-to/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [ What I believe is really good in the so-called documentary approach to photography is the addition of lyricism.\[this quality\] is usually produced unconsciously and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/what-i-believe-is-really-good-in-the-so-called-documentary-approach/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [Photography is not cute cats, nor nudes, motherhood or arrangements of manufactured products. Under no circumstances it is anything ever anywhere near a beach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/photography-is-not-cute-cats-nor-nudes-motherhood-or-arrangements-of/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [I used to try to figure out precisely what I was seeing all the time, until I discovered I didn't need to. If the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-used-to-try-to-figure-out-precisely-what-i-was-seeing-all-the-time/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [What America needs is a political revolution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/what-america-needs-is-a-political-revolution/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [It's the way to educate your eyes. Stare. Pry, listen eavesdrop. Die knowing something. You are not here long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/it-s-the-way-to-educate-your-eyes-stare-pry-listen-eavesdrop-die/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [I think there is a period of esthetic discovery that happens to a man and he can do all sorts of things at white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-think-there-is-a-period-of-esthetic-discovery-that-happens-to-a-man/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [Documentary: That’s a sophisticated and misleading word. And not really clear… The term should be documentary style… You see, a document has use, whereas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/documentary-that-s-a-sophisticated-and-misleading-word-and-not-really/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [It is the way to educate your eye and more. Stare, pry, listen, eavesdrop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/it-is-the-way-to-educate-your-eye-and-more-stare-pry-listen-eavesdrop/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [Leaving aside the mysteries and the inequities of human talent, brains, taste, and reputations, the matter of art in photography may come down to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/leaving-aside-the-mysteries-and-the-inequities-of-human-talent-brains/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [ Nobody should touch a Polaroid \[camera\] until he's over sixty ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/nobody-should-touch-a-polaroid-camera-until-he-s-over-sixty/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [With the camera, it's all or nothing. You either get what you're after at once, or what you do has to be worthless. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/with-the-camera-it-s-all-or-nothing-you-either-get-what-you-re-after/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [The eye traffics in feelings, not in thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/the-eye-traffics-in-feelings-not-in-thoughts/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

> [The secret of photography is, the camera takes on the character and personality of the handler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/the-secret-of-photography-is-the-camera-takes-on-the-character-and/)

[Walker Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

[Explore all 45 Walker Evans quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/)

## More Arrogance quotes

> [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/)

[Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/)

> [wishes for sons by Lucille Clifton i wish them cramps. i wish them a strange town and the last tampon. I wish them no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucille-clifton/wishes-for-sons-by-lucille-clifton-i-wish-them-cramps-i-wish-them-a/)

[Lucille Clifton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucille-clifton/)

> [The structure of the Swiss ruling class is rock-hard, and unchanged since the time of Napoleon. They sit on their mountains and lecture the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-ziegler/the-structure-of-the-swiss-ruling-class-is-rock-hard-and-unchanged/)

[Jean Ziegler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-ziegler/)

> [What you see of me on TV and all of that, that is me - that's truly how I feel. I'm just multiplying it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-corbin/what-you-see-of-me-on-tv-and-all-of-that-that-is-me-that-s-truly-how/)

[Baron Corbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-corbin/)

> [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [Never mistake someones quietness for their arrogance as you can surely miss out on an awsome personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-mistake-someones-quietness-for-their-arrogance-as-you-can/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/most-of-us-think-of-pride-as-self-centeredness-conceit-boastfulness/)

[Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/)

> [“I was consumed by a selfishness and arrogance that I didn't dare let go of until I found a new persona to hide behind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-koomson/i-was-consumed-by-a-selfishness-and-arrogance-that-i-didn-t-dare-let/)

[Dorothy Koomson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-koomson/)

> [Arrogance is the outgrowth of prosperity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plautus/arrogance-is-the-outgrowth-of-prosperity/)

[Plautus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plautus/)

> [Timing and arrogance are decisive factors in the successful use of talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/timing-and-arrogance-are-decisive-factors-in-the-successful-use-of/)

[Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/)

> [Some say work smarter, not harder, but the wisest are both. Whether you're more of a hard worker or a smart worker, if you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colby-tatem/some-say-work-smarter-not-harder-but-the-wisest-are-both-whether-you/)

[Colby Tatem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colby-tatem/)

> [Closed some doors, not because of pride, incapacity or arrogance, but simply because they no longer lead somewhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frenz-jeffrey/closed-some-doors-not-because-of-pride-incapacity-or-arrogance-but/)

[Frenz Jeffrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frenz-jeffrey/)

> [My success isn't a result of arrogance - it's a result of belief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-mcgregor/my-success-isn-t-a-result-of-arrogance-it-s-a-result-of-belief/)

[Conor McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-mcgregor/)

> [“...a great man who is vicious will only be a great doer of evil, and a rich man who is not liberal will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-cervantes/a-great-man-who-is-vicious-will-only-be-a-great-doer-of-evil-and-a/)

Miguel Cervantes

> [An increasing number of people are growing uncomfortable with the gulf between the world's rich and the poor. Ostentatiously splashing your money around simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/an-increasing-number-of-people-are-growing-uncomfortable-with-the/)

[Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/)

[Browse all 1,418 Arrogance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrogance/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I say half jokingly that photography is the most difficult of the arts. It does require a certain arrogance to see and to choose. I feel myself walking on a tightrope instead of on the ground.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Walker Evans"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is-the-most-difficult-of-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Arrogance"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is-the-most-difficult-of-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/walker-evans-14813_arrogance_i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is_3004432.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/walker-evans-14813_arrogance_i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is_3004432.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/walker-evans-14813_arrogance_i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is_3004432.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I say half jokingly that photography is the most difficult of the arts. It does require a certain arrogance…” — Walker Evans",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Walker Evans",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-evans/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I say half jokingly that photography...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is-the-most-difficult-of-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-evans/i-say-half-jokingly-that-photography-is-the-most-difficult-of-the/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
