I recently read Errol Morris’
latest book Believing is Seeing (Observations on the Mysteries of Photography)
in which he sets of to solve, or at best elegantly question, the mysteries of a
selection of historical photographs that have been in one way or another the focus
of controversy through a set of essays about the questions of posing, photo
fakery, reading the intentions of the photographer from an image, what
photography means and how it relates to the world.
His writing style is filled at times with humor and facts at
the brink of randomness which graciously compliment the sustained questioning
of the illusion that photography ultimately is, without departing from the rigidity
of empirical and exhaustive research. Believing is Seeing
is a call to strive away from Emotional Reasoning and jumping to conclusions when
dealing with photographs as unchallenged representations of reality. Erroll Morris
writes, ‘People have been programmed by natural selection to project ourselves
into the world and imagine the world (of a photographer) as we imagine ours; we
want to know when we end and the world begins. We want to know where that line
is. It’s the deepest problem in epistemology.’
The book contains six chapters each dealing with a different
epistemic dilemma in photography, from the intentions of the photographer when
composing ‘reality’, and the easy of audiences in ‘knowing’ the
intentions by looking at the picture itself; to how photographs reveal and
conceal information most, if not all of the time; how they are used by people in power as propaganda to support their agendas; to how we perceive
photography to immortalize something about us in perpetuity through portraits and documentation of our lives.
Although the book sets to solve some of the intrinsic
mysteries of photography it naturally posses more questions than answers, for
truth becomes more elusive the more we search for it, and the deeper we sink ourselves down the rabbit hole. But one thing is certain, and of utmost importance to all of
those who seek truth, or a decent approximation to it: questioning reality rationally
and dispassionately becomes a fundamental exercise, if not a vital one, to
clear the fog of assumptions in a medium very often charged with a great deal
of emotions and so called undisputable facts. Believing is Seeing takes us in that
path, one that photographers should more often explore for their benefit
and that of their audiences.
Want to know more about Erroll Morris:
Twitter: @errolmorris
