Photography as Reverence and Revelation

When I read Joanna Patterson's poem This is Not Photography, I realized that I had never really defined for myself what photography meant to me. So, inspired by Joanna's words, I sat down and thought about how making images makes me feel and wrote my own poem This is Revelation. Photography is about so much more than a camera and a memory card. It is a way to connect deeply to your soul.

I agree with Edward Steichen who says: "Photography was conceived as a mirror of the universal elements and emotions of the everydayness of life ... a mirror of the essential oneness of mankind."

This is Revelation

Inspired by Joanna Patterson

This is not photography.

This is joy of radiant light.

This is shape of soft cloud.

This is touch of fern, delicate and vulnerable.

This is curiosity.

This is wonder.

This is slow time.

This is seeing past appearances.

This is a language deeper than words.

This is not photography.

This is silent conversation between line and color.

This is soul seeking voice.

This is recognition.

This is connection.

This is praying with soft eyes.

This is embracing the world.

This is celebrating beauty.

This is a thousand new perspectives.

This is not photography.

This is the heart at play.

This is paying attention.

This is dreaming with eyes open wide.

This is songs of praise.

This is my soul as sacred scribe of light.

This is light reflected.

This is reverence.

This is revelation.