I have been noticing this for a while now. I try my best to read widely of the literature of photography from Alfred Stieglitz to Alec Soth and everything in between. Most photographers, at least the more introspective ones, always comment on how even the most documentary (descriptive) picture sometimes yields a glimpse of the photographer. As Alec Soth said in a February 2022 New Yorker article: “Whether you are Minor White or Robert Frank, almost every photograph starts with an act of pure description – a window. But every now and then you catch a glimpse of the photographer’s reflection. The mirror is just another function of the window.” In Soth’s conception a photographer can become an accidental practitioner of The Equivalent.

I think the conscientious practitioner of the Equivalent tradition when he comes upon a subjects may see his reflection in the “window” but then decides to explore that reflection intentionally so that it becomes a purposeful mirror. It is purposeful because the object photographed is manipulated in such a way that it becomes a metaphor, a stand in for the photographer and his emotions. Minor White took this to heart. So much so that he sometimes feared the very act of photography: “Self-discovery through a camera? I am scared to look for fear of discovering how shallow my Self is! “I will persist however … because the camera has its eye on the exterior world. Camera will lead my constant introspection back into the world. So camera work will save my life.” This quote synthesizes eloquently what I think Alec Soth was trying to get at. Photography of the world can lead to a better understanding of your inner self which can feedback on your continued existence and practice.

Just recently I picked up Wim Wenders (apparently classic – I had no idea) book, Once. In it the brilliant movie director and photographer reflects upon taking pictures and at one point says: Taking pictures is an act in two directions: forwards and backwards. Yes, taking pictures also “backfires”. This isn’t even too lame a comparison. Just as the hunter lifts his rifle, aims at the deer in front of him, pulls the trigger, and, when the bullet departs form the muzzle, is thrown backwards by the recoil, the photographer, likewise, is thrown backwards, onto himself, when releasing the shutter.

The quote amazes me. It is the sentiment of Minor White but with a layer of American Western violence. Poetic but a little disturbing. It has Soth’s sentiment that self realization/actualization is accidental. This contrasts with what Minor White or Stieglitz would contend that this self actualization through photography is intentional and sought out.

Minor White actually summed up this whole post when he observed that: “The camera is first a means of self-discovery and a means of self-growth. The artist has one thing to say—himself“.