---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Black-and-white photography, which I was…"
description: "\"Black-and-white photography, which I was doing in the very early days, was essentially called art photography and usually consisted of landscapes by pe..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c72/william-eggleston-12373_art_black-and-white-photography-which-i-was_2259644.jpg"
---

#  Black-and-white photography, which I was doing in the very…

![“Black-and-white photography, which I was doing in the very early days, was essentially called art photography and usually consisted of landscapes by people like Ansel Adams and Edward Weston. But photographs by people like Adams didn't interest me.” quote by William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c72/william-eggleston-12373_art_black-and-white-photography-which-i-was_2259644.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c72/william-eggleston-12373_art_black-and-white-photography-which-i-was_2259644.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c72/william-eggleston-12373_art_black-and-white-photography-which-i-was_2259644.jpg)

> “Black-and-white photography, which I was doing in the very early days, was essentially called art photography and usually consisted of landscapes by people like Ansel Adams and Edward Weston. But photographs by people like Adams didn't interest me.”

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

## About This Quote

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

Early black‑and‑white photography was labeled “art photography” and dominated by landscape imagery, yet Eggleston sought different subjects.

**In simple terms:** Early B&amp;W art focused on landscapes, but he wanted other scenes.

Key Takeaway

Explore unconventional subjects in familiar mediums.

Themes

art photography innovation

Mood

creative analytical

Type

inspirational philosophical

When to use this quote

- gallery curatorship
- photography education
- creative projects

Key Concepts

aesthetics cultural history visual studies

Questions to Reflect On

- What unconventional subjects could you photograph?
- How might you reinterpret a classic style?

A Different Perspective

Sticking to tradition can limit artistic growth.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-photography/) [Black and white](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-and-white/) [Black and white photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-and-white-photography/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Landscape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/landscape/) [Landscapes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/landscapes/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Photographs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographs/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/)

## Related quotes

> [Black and white photography is truly quite a 'departure from reality', and the transition from one aspect of visual magic to another was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/black-and-white-photography-is-truly-quite-a-departure-from-reality/)

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

> [To some extent, the cult surrounding black-and-white photography is based on nostalgia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rene-burri/to-some-extent-the-cult-surrounding-black-and-white-photography-is/)

[Rene Burri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rene-burri/)

> [“Love is the color in the black and white photography!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/love-is-the-color-in-the-black-and-white-photography/)

[Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [Fine-art photography is a very small world associated with galleries, museums, and university art programs. It's not like rock music; the products of this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-klett/fine-art-photography-is-a-very-small-world-associated-with-galleries/)

[Mark Klett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-klett/)

> [Photography is usually viewed as a solitary activity, but the truth of the matter is that people love to shoot together, compare notes, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-kelby/photography-is-usually-viewed-as-a-solitary-activity-but-the-truth-of/)

[Scott Kelby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-kelby/)

> [Well, people from the "me" generation use photography to show off what they are doing, to show the world themselves and their friends. Those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stuart-franklin/well-people-from-the-me-generation-use-photography-to-show-off-what/)

[Stuart Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stuart-franklin/)

> [A lot of the photography I'm doing and thinking about is directed at Instagram.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-shore/a-lot-of-the-photography-i-m-doing-and-thinking-about-is-directed-at/)

[Stephen Shore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-shore/)

> [We don't understand what photography is doing. We don't understand the power of its rhetoric. We don't understand why the Provoke photographers showed Tokyo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stuart-franklin/we-don-t-understand-what-photography-is-doing-we-don-t-understand-the/)

[Stuart Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stuart-franklin/)

> [One teacher told me that my work belonged in the trash. That day I ran out of the classroom and ended up in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-parla/one-teacher-told-me-that-my-work-belonged-in-the-trash-that-day-i-ran/)

[Jose Parla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-parla/)

> [Be yourself. I much prefer seeing something, even it is clumsy, that doesn't look like somebody else's work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-klein/be-yourself-i-much-prefer-seeing-something-even-it-is-clumsy-that/)

[William Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-klein/)

> [I am inspired by great food, theater, books, the beach, black-and-white photography, and great vocalists, like Dianne Reeves, Alice Smith, and Shirley Horn. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-tazel/i-am-inspired-by-great-food-theater-books-the-beach-black-and-white/)

[Erica Tazel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-tazel/)

> [It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera... they are made with the eye, heart and head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-cartier-bresson/it-is-an-illusion-that-photos-are-made-with-the-camera-they-are-made/)

[Henri Cartier-Bresson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-cartier-bresson/)

> [ In fact, I probably learned more about photography from studying black-and-white photography in those magazines \[Look Magazine and LIFE Magazine\] than I did from… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vilmos-zsigmond/in-fact-i-probably-learned-more-about-photography-from-studying-black/)

[Vilmos Zsigmond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vilmos-zsigmond/)

> [When you photograph people in color you photograph their clothes. When you photograph people in black and white, you photograph their soul!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-grant/when-you-photograph-people-in-color-you-photograph-their-clothes-when/)

Ted Grant

> [A lot of photographers think that if they buy a better camera they'll be able to take better photographs. A better camera won't do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-newman/a-lot-of-photographers-think-that-if-they-buy-a-better-camera-they-ll/)

[Arnold Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-newman/)

## More by William Eggleston

> [I like to think that my works flow like music. That may be one reason I work in large groups versus one picture of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/i-like-to-think-that-my-works-flow-like-music-that-may-be-one-reason/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [I don't look at other photographs much at all. I don't know why. I study my own a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/i-don-t-look-at-other-photographs-much-at-all-i-don-t-know-why-i/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [I had the attitude that I would work with this present-day material and do the best I could to describe it with photography, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/i-had-the-attitude-that-i-would-work-with-this-present-day-material/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [Generally, that's what happens-a fundamental rotting of the idea. They woke up with the wrong idea. It's just like music: If you don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/generally-that-s-what-happens-a-fundamental-rotting-of-the-idea-they/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [I knew it was happening, but I never paid much attention to it . . . just to the passage of time. Something new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/i-knew-it-was-happening-but-i-never-paid-much-attention-to-it-just-to/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [You become technically proficient whether you want to or not, the more you take pictures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/you-become-technically-proficient-whether-you-want-to-or-not-the-more/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [Unfortunately they're practically all dead. And many were my closest associates: friends, co-directors, whatever you want to say - my partners in crime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/unfortunately-they-re-practically-all-dead-and-many-were-my-closest/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [I had this notion of what I called a democratic way of looking around, that nothing was more or less important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/i-had-this-notion-of-what-i-called-a-democratic-way-of-looking-around/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [I met and became close with John Szarkowski of the Museum of Modern Art. He was incredibly supportive about me working in color.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/i-met-and-became-close-with-john-szarkowski-of-the-museum-of-modern/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [The immediate reviews were very hostile, but they didn't bother me-I had the attitude that I was right. The poor guys who were critics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/the-immediate-reviews-were-very-hostile-but-they-didn-t-bother-me-i/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [Only the few times I've been to so-called treatment centers, which were a complete waste of money and useless. I didn't know what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/only-the-few-times-i-ve-been-to-so-called-treatment-centers-which/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [I quite frequently don't look through the camera, which is very close to being blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/i-quite-frequently-don-t-look-through-the-camera-which-is-very-close/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [A lot of my friends were mostly working in black-and-white-people like Lee Friedlander, Diane Arbus, Garry Winogrand, and others. We would exchange prints with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/a-lot-of-my-friends-were-mostly-working-in-black-and-white-people/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [Everything must work in concert. Composition is important, but so are many other things, from content to the way colours work with or against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/everything-must-work-in-concert-composition-is-important-but-so-are/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

> [My friend who I went to boarding school with was interested in photography. He insisted that I buy a camera and marched me downtown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/my-friend-who-i-went-to-boarding-school-with-was-interested-in/)

[William Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

[Explore all 55 William Eggleston quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/)

## More Art quotes

> [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/)

[Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/)

> [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/)

[Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/)

> [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/)

[Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/)

> [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/)

[Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/)

> [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/)

[Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/)

> [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/)

[Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/)

> [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/)

Taf Teh

> [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/)

[Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/)

> [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/)

[Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/)

> [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/)

[Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/)

[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/)

> [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/)

[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/)

> [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/)

[Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/)

[Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Black-and-white photography, which I was doing in the very early days, was essentially called art photography and usually consisted of landscapes by people like Ansel Adams and Edward Weston. But photographs by people like Adams didn't interest me.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Eggleston"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/black-and-white-photography-which-i-was-doing-in-the-very-early-days/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Art"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/black-and-white-photography-which-i-was-doing-in-the-very-early-days/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c72/william-eggleston-12373_art_black-and-white-photography-which-i-was_2259644.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c72/william-eggleston-12373_art_black-and-white-photography-which-i-was_2259644.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c72/william-eggleston-12373_art_black-and-white-photography-which-i-was_2259644.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Black-and-white photography, which I was doing in the very early days, was essentially called art…” — William Eggleston",
                "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": "William Eggleston",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-eggleston/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Black-and-white photography, which I was doing...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/black-and-white-photography-which-i-was-doing-in-the-very-early-days/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-eggleston/black-and-white-photography-which-i-was-doing-in-the-very-early-days/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
