Why do we do what we do as photographers? Where does our motivation come from? Why do some subjects interest us more than others? Episode number 12 of Camera Position briefly traces my 16-year examination of Italy’s culture, architecture and landscape and looks at where we find our inspiration as image makers.

Trastevere, Roma, 1990
Photograph by Jeff Curto

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It took Edward Weston 29 prior attempts to get to the point where he made his well-known “Pepper #30” photograph. Musicians have to practice their scales, and so do photographers, trying a variety of attempts at conveying the essence of their subjects before hitting on the one that works the best. Weston’s strategy of looking at the three-dimensional world in a two-dimensional image is explored with Pepper #30 and Head-Down Nude.

Pepper #30, 1930
by Edward Weston

Head Down Nude, 1936
by Edward Weston

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Photographers have to be aware of the fact that viewers of their images can’t know the whole story of how a photograph came to be. The image has to rely on its own visual authority to get the message across. Using this photograph of Sant’ Antimo, a 12th Century Romanesque abbey in rural Tuscany, I explore the idea of where images come from and how that impetus translates to the viewer.

Abbazia di Sant’ Antimo, 1997
Photograph by Jeff Curto

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The idea you want to communicate in a photograph is in direct relation to the way in which you choose to make that photograph. A photograph of Bernini’s beautiful Baroque fountain, situated in front of the Pantheon, is used to examine how composition and idea play off of one another.

Fontana, Piazza della Rotunda, Roma, 1990
Photograph by Jeff Curto

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Paul Strand’s masterful 1953 portrait “The Family” acts as a backdrop for some thoughts on how interaction between the photographer and subject and among the subjects themselves creates visual and emotional interest in a photograph.

The Family, Luzzara, Italy, 1953
Photograph by Paul Strand

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