Revealing Secrets (with Photography).

Over the past year, I have obtained a slightly unhealthy obsession with photography. Naturally, people have said it's just a fad - a phase. However, I believe it's something more.

I love the freedom of expression provoked by wielding a camera. Through it, I can express my views silently and with little threat of questions. The truth, or whatever it is I am trying to illustrate, is exposed on a sheet of light sensitive paper. I cannot hide from it - it is there for everyone to see.

A frightening thought, no?
I will admit it's more than a little shocking, but it's also incredibly liberating.

When looking through the camera's lens, I begin to seek the truth in everything. I search for the stories hidden behind strangers' eyes and glimpsed in their facial expressions. Sometimes, I discover the moral of the story. Sometimes, I am left with just the mismatched pieces of puzzle that will never be completed. Without doubt, "Photography was the first medium to truly open our eyes to the outside world, to show us its variety and beauty, and its injustices; in short, to reveal its secrets" (Icons of Photography: The 19th Century).

Thus, this probably will be the first of numerous posts written by me centered on photography.
Ah well.

To begin, here are some of my favorite photograhs of the 1800s.

Le Stryge (The Vampire) by Charles Negre

Taken in 1853, I love the antiquity yet immediate relevance of this photograph. The textures illustrated in the photo are incredible, and the obvious tension between the rough stone and the dapper gentlemen lend to its surrealism. It's fabulous.

The Mediterranean with Mont Agde by Gustave Le Gray

This photo is incredible in so many ways...
I love how Gray utilized light and shadow in the photo to not only create drama but also to capture a moment of calm. The landscape is immense, yet the viewer still feels like he or she is a part of it.

Tea Merchant by Lewis Carroll

All of Carroll's work has a touch of the surreal which is why I love it so...

Comtesse de Castiglione by Pierre-Louis Pierson

Looking at this photo just makes you wonder...
What secrets does this woman hold?

The Bridge of Sighs, Venice by Carlo Naya

Another photographer who has utilized light and shadow to create a gorgeous photograph...

View from Torre di Arnolfo, Palazzo Vecchio to Florence Cathedral by The Alinari Brothers

What can I say? I love the surreal.

And finally,
Spring Showers by Alfred Stieglitz

Amazing, no?