Chapter 2. The Photographic Storyteller

A Texas windmill and vibrant sunset offer a sense of place.

Canon 5D Mk II, 400mm, 1/1000 sec., f/5.6, ISO 100

So, who are we really? When you pick up your camera, strap it over your shoulder, and walk out the door, are you suddenly a different person than you were moments before? If you’re like most folks who consider photography a profession or a hobby, you don’t spend much time waxing philosophical about what it means to trip the shutter or compose an image. You’d rather get on with making images, thinking creatively, and deciding on what to eat later that evening. However, amid all the shutter actuations, lens changing, model posing, gear buying, and minutes spent in front of the computer screen, it’s probably worth a second of your time to reflect on what it is we are actually doing when using all the equipment we collect in the name of photography.