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The Pitfalls of Hero Worship

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

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Chris Murray

Chris Murray is a full-time photographer, instructor, and writer from New York State. His photographs are not meant to be a literal document of the woods, mountains, and rivers of his home state, but rather a creative expression of his relationship with the places that ceaselessly inspire him.

chrismurrayphotography.com



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Several years ago, while sequestered at home during the early days of the pandemic and jonesing for new reading material, I discovered the book Interviews with Master Photographers through my local library. Published in 1975, it contains interviews with ten iconic twentieth-century photographers from various genres.

As a landscape/nature photographer, I was most interested in the interviews with Minor White, Imogen Cunningham, and Brett Weston (though I also enjoyed the discussions with Arnold Newman and Elliot Erwitt). While the interviews were entertaining and insightful, what stood out most was how different the three were. There was Minor White, the “Zen Master” of photographers, who championed the concept of Equivalence and the metaphorical potential of photography. In her characteristically caustic and brutally honest fashion, Imogen had little use for the philosophical theories of other photographers, referring to them as “junk.”

While the interviews were entertaining and insightful, what stood out most was how different the three were.
Known for refusing to verbally discuss symbolism or philosophy in his own photography, Brett Weston also had little use for Minor’s approach, while also admitting to being a harsh critic of the work and ideas of other photographers, including Minor and Imogen - three photographers with wildly disparate personalities, beliefs, and approaches. Yet, despite their differences, they all had one thing in common: they were all groundbreaking artists.

I was reminded of the book recently when a friend admitted that he has been "in his head" too much lately, citing struggles with finding “meaning” in his photography. I know well of his pain. The culprit is the famous Minor White quote, "One should photograph objects, not only for what they are, but what else they are." It's the idea that photographs can serve as metaphors for emotions and meanings rather than illustrations of literal things. Fair enough, and I completely agree, but when taken too literally, it can have a paralyzing effect on our photography. We feel that every photo must have a meaning or be about something that can be expressed in words. If we can't identify the meaning, we shouldn't make the photo. It's a hell of a burden to place on oneself.



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