A reflection by Danny Schweers for December 10, 2023.
In my wife’s studio, geometry and color catch my eye. A glance is all it takes. Out comes my camera. As usual, the finished photo barely resembles the brief vision that inspired it. As philosophers have long observed, images cannot capture reality any more than words can capture the spark of inspiration. Even so, as artists and writers have long observed, images and words themselves can inspire and sing. They can be meaningful and moving. They can distill and endure. They may not be a substitute for the original but they are real in themselves with their own birth, life, and history. So say I, I who would treasure not only the original glance and spark but their offspring as well, children of inspiration.
As a photographer whose work is usually representational — me showing you my world — I find myself wanting to share what inspires me. In that I am often disappointed. Little complaining voices in my head say I have failed. They tell me others with real talent succeed. Then there are the advertisers, those selling cameras. They tell me others with real cameras succeed. What I am saying here is that failing to capture the original inspiration is not a matter of talent or equipment.
As someone who teaches photography, my classes often attract students who are disappointed in their images. They see something beautiful or eye-catching but their photos fail to capture what they saw. So they turn to me, hoping hours of instruction will let them capture the moment. I teach them to make better photographs instead.
I often turn to words when inspired, but am faced with the same disappointment if I am trying to capture in words the original spark of inspiration. For one thing, I am convinced that inspiration is often wordless. We can try to convert that spark into words but, just as translations from one language to another often fail to do justice to the original, trying to put an original inspiration into words produces something very different from the original, especially if the original is a wordless intuition.
I look at what I have written here and little complaining voices in my head say I have failed. They tell me others with real talent and skill succeed. But I am saying that failing to capture the original inspiration is not a matter of talent or skill. My words may fail because I have neither talent nor skill but that is another question.
There is no reason to be disappointed in failing to capture the original glimpse or spark. That is what I am arguing here. Art and writing are worth pursuing, but not as imitations. They can be inspiring in themselves. Perhaps they can point to what inspired them. Perhaps they can tell others where to look. I have tried to do that with this image and these words. I can be dissatisfied with them, but not because they do not capture the glimpse or the spark. My job is to be thankful for the inspiration but look to my craft.
So too, I want to say, of life. We cannot be the people who inspire us, but our lives can be inspiring. We cannot be any of those whose faith has inspired us, but we can have faith. We can do the work given us to do. We can give thanks. God helps us!
Photo above of my wife’s fiber-art studio.
Photo and prayer copyright 2023 by Danny Nelson Schweers.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Danny chairs SsAM’s Communication Committee. He is an active photographer and writer. Click here to visit his website and make a comment.
