I got dust on the sensor of my Canon 1Ds Mark III and couldn’t get it off.  The vibration on startup and shutdown didn’t dislodge it.  I tried cleaning it witn a sensor brush and that didn’t work.  So I took it into the local Canon Express Service Center to have them do it.  I was expecting to pay about 50 bucks for it but was delighted to find out they did it for free.  That put a smile on my face.  Another satisfied Canon customer.

…all photographers of stature whom I admire seem to share this fundamental characteristic:  a deep and long-lasting respect and love for the subject matter.

We’re exploring art from the perspective of other artistic disciplines to shed light on what it means to be a photographer and an artist.  (You can read The Photographer as Artist – Introduction.)  We’re doing this because photographers often seem to be expected to meet a “reality standard” that has not been imposed on other artists since the classic period of Greece two thousand years ago – “Did you use a filter?” “Are these colors real?” “Did you manipulate this photograph?”

There are three areas to explore – what I call the Tripod of Artistry – the three legs upon which all arts and artists stand.  This article looks at the first of the three – Expressive Spectrum.

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… photography is only a tool, a vehicle, for expressing or transmitting a passion in something else.

A unique style,… is the by-product of visual exploration, not its goal.  Personal vision comes only from not aiming at it.  Over a long period of time and through many, many images, the self re-emerges with even greater strength than if it were the end-product.  Ironically, by starting with self, it is missed; ignore it, and it becomes evident.

Studying the master painters has taught me a lot about light and making a sculpture taught me a lot about the power of the message: the more I take away from the block, the more I’m adding.  To me, a body of work is like the human body.  It has three elements that I believe to be most essential.  First, it should have very strong bones – able to stand on its own.  Second, it should have a distinct and clear voice in order to communicate impeccably.  That voice should be able to create the intellectual connection and emotional depth necessary within peoples’ hears, minds and souls.  Third, it should have a strong heart to pump blood all the way to one’s fingertips – to pump life all the way to the corners of one’s art.

To see more of Yousef Khanfar’s photographs, visit www.yousefkhanfar.com.

Photographers must be intoxicated with their subject and dive into its universe.  That’s the only way the viewer will be able to see and feel the work.  When you believe strongly in something, you stop creating art and start releasing art.  It’s all about the will, not only the skill.

See more of Yousef Khanfar’s photography at www.yousefkhanfar.com.

As I read more and more about photography in particular and art in general, I come across quotations that resonate.  This series of posts will be used to pass these along.