Pixiq

"Part of being a photographer is understanding what others are trying to say in their photography. The ignorance of visual language is the ignorance of the highest form of photographic practice."

Considering the vital topics that could be addressed by photographers, a number of photographic practices seem to me to be a bit out of place and somewhat superficial at this moment in time. Many of them seem to cater to the 1% mentality or at least to the subset of the monetary and materialistically greedy. It is that mentality which is the cause of major issues in the USA and other parts of the world. When truth and scientific fact are misrepresented, distorted, denied by ignorance and greed, we are hurtling out of control towards human annihilation.

Unfortunately, money seems to be the driving force for many kinds of images being produced. The selling of products may pay handsomely, but the consequences of materialistic production is being perpetuated rather than curtailed. Over production and the continuous depletion of our recources can not be an endless endeavor. Our Earth is a finite resource that until recently was working in a harmonious way to facilitate all life. It was a cycle that perpetuated the existence of life.

The biggest myth is that the world is OK.

The deniers of truth seem to think that scientific facts, mean nothing. They believe that the world is just fine as it is and that we can keep acting as we have been doing. Yet, we face enormous problems with an ever growing population which is now at over 7 billion people worldwide. That population has been doubling in size every thirty some years. This huge proliferation of humans means ever growing strains on water supply, food supply, health, housing, land use, air quality, environments, security, weather, peace and so on. Sustainability is part of the issue, peace and human suffering is another. These are issues we will all have to deal with in the very near future if we simply ignore the world.  

The distractions from reality include…

…anything which takes us away from making sure the planet survives, that war is stopped, that we the people get justice and healthcare. It is not a time for frivolous activities, wasteful resources, pretentious living. In order to make this world a better place for all life, everyone needs to work together and start thinking in terms of how we can instigate change together. Man cannot continue at our present rate of consumption. The natural balance has been thrust into chaos. The world has become sick and we are the aggressive cancer. We are also solely and undeniably the only possibility for a cure! We can be the antidote. If we are not too late!

When politicians distort science | Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

Thom Hartmann: As World Population Reaches 7 Billion, What Will Save Us From Ourselves?

So what is so important?

Climate Change - Could be the biggest challange that we face! 

PHOTOGRAPHY CHANGES OUR AWARENESS OF GLOBAL ISSUES AND ...

SHOOTING THE EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING FROM NIKON

SOCIAL DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY - WIKIPEDIA, THE FREE ENCYCLOPEDIA

GLOBAL WARMING EFFECTS MAP - EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING

GLOBAL WARMING -- NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

THREE SHADOWS GALLERY IN BEIJING TURNS FOCUS ON GLOBAL WARMING ...

THE ART OF GLOBAL WARMING COAL + ICE PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION ...

 

But there is plenty more to deal with…

Human suffering - Difficult subject - Ethics

Turning Human Suffering Into Art - Forbes.com

A-M. JohannesNews Media's Depiction of Human Suffering - A-M. Johannes

Transforming sensibilities The photography of Bastienne Schmidt By ...

Soldier Photography ... - Human Rights Law Review - Oxford Journals

www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/nov/16/criticism-cri...

Pollution

J Henry Fair's Aerial Photographs of Industrial Pollution - LightBox

Amazing Pictures, Pollution in China | ChinaHush Light Pollution — Photo

Gallery — National Geographic Magazine

Polluted Ocean Photos -- National Geographic

Soviet Pollution: A Lethal Legacy — Gerd Ludwig Photography

Nukes and Nuclear power

tokyo-bittersweet.com/.../ 

www.environmentalartblog.com/ 2009/04/john-pfa...

johnpfahl.com/

When politicians distort science | Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

WATER

Our Oceans Are in Dire Shape, But Without Them All Life on Land -- Human, Plant and Animal -- Is Totally Screwed

Ocean Pollution - Ocean Garbage - Marine Debris | SeaPics.com

 www.guardian.co.uk/.../ 2008/nov/25/water-china

 National Geographic Freshwater 101: Pollution

Air

Amazing Pictures, Pollution in China | ChinaHush

Air Pollution Facts, Air Pollution Effects, Air Pollution Solutions, Air ...

FOOD

Global Food Shortage Becomes Urgent as Planet Warms | Climate ...

THE GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS - NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

 

War 

 James Nachtwey

American Photography: Photography and War

War Photography - The New York Times

Libya war: Sean Smith's photographs of Tripoli's fall - in pictures ...

2 renowned photojournalists killed in Libya - World news - Mideast ...

Shaped by War: Photographs by Don McCullin | History Today

…Health, Disease, Greed…and so on!

 

Part of being a photographer is understanding what others are trying to say in their photography. The ignorance of visual language is the ignorance of the highest form of photographic practice.

There are many more things that need to be changed in our world. We as photographers have the opportunity to make a huge difference. The trick is to seek the truth! And that truth needs to be understandable and shared with all!