Ernst Haas Quotes

I went into photography because it seemed like the perfect vehicle for commenting on the madness of today's existence.

I'm so drawn to photography because you can convey a complex story in a single frame.

Photography is a major force in explaining man to man.

Every photograph is the photographer's opinion about something. It's how they feel about something: what they think is horrible, tragic, funny.

You know, the camera is not meant just to show misery.

What I find most satisfying about photography is the way in which it allows me to document 'reality' while at the same time creating my own version thereof; in other words, the reality I present is a reality based upon what I choose to include in the frame and what I choose to leave out.

I believe in living with the camera, and not using the camera.

Photography is a small voice, at best, but sometimes one photograph, or a group of them, can lure our sense of awareness.

We must remember that a photograph can hold just as much as we put into it, and no one has ever approached the full possibilities of the medium.

When a moment in front of me appears to be particularly special, whether it be by beauty or experience, I capture it. I usually find a reason to justify taking that photo - symmetry, or color, or contrast - and it's my hope that my photography sheds light onto what I see and do on a daily basis.

The camera can be the most deadly weapon since the assassin's bullet. Or it can be the lotion of the heart.

The camera photographs what's there.

To me, photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event.

I think there are two types of photographers, those who want to document the world and those who want to create their own world. I am more interested in documenting the world and presenting it to people with the question attached, 'Does this make any sense to you?'

I've always been so surprised by how people interpret my photos in context.

If I could tell the story in words, I wouldn't need to lug around a camera.

Essentially what photography is is life lit up.

I always thought of photography as a naughty thing to do - that was one of my favorite things about it, and when I first did it, I felt very perverse.

Photography to me is catching a moment which is passing, and which is true.

You take 35 degrees out of 360 degrees and call it a photo. No individual photo explains anything. That's what makes photography such a wonderful and problematic medium.

One advantage of photography is that it's visual and can transcend language.

Photographs aren't accounts of scrutiny. The shutter is open for a fraction of a second.

I liked the idea of being a photographer, just that you take this one picture of this one thing that'll never happen again - it's a bit weird when you think about it.

Photographs speak to me, and I obey.

Photography is about finding out what can happen in the frame. When you put four edges around some facts, you change those facts.