Why does photography exist?

Do you ever wonder why photography exists?

Do you ever wonder why does photography exist? Why people dedicated their lives to become a person who takes their camera every day and everywhere?

Photography is already part of our daily life, but we have never wondered why it is there. From newspaper to social media platforms there are tons of photos uploaded regularly, no matter if you are professionals or armatures, we all take photos whenever we want.

Possibly the reason we take photos is that we want to capture the moment of people we love and want to keep in memories, or just post their ugly photos on their birthday, have banter with mates. Parents as well want to take photos of their own kids and keep records of their developing children.

What about the professionals, what do they think?

"I started wanting to do it for the fact that it is important as a photojournalist to record our own history but eventually it's the beautiful photos I get as a result. And I want everyone to see it"- Jasper Chan, Director of photography, JCPS

"In a deeply personal way, I feel an image is a poem about time, about “staying the moment”. Photography can defeat time. Images can keep the memory of a loved one alive, hold a moment in history for future generations, be a witness to tragedy or joy. " - Sarah Leen, Director of Photography, National Geographic

"I believe it’s incredibly important for photographers to document everyday life and even sometimes the seemingly mundane, not just for a better understanding of our times, but for individuals in the future to be able to reflect on who they are and how they got there. A photograph is particularly powerful because it is accessible to most of humanity. There is no language barrier in photography. I pick stories and pursue the projects I do to document not only important issues of our time but ones that will also be relevant or perhaps even more vital for our understanding of humanity in the future."- Laura Morton, Photographer

Learn more about what other professions think.

There are some festivals that you can pay a visit and learn more about photography.

Ballarat International Foto Biennale: Explore Ballarat

PHOTO2020 International Festival of Photography