Gartmore. might have been more polite to ask why I do not go to galleries rather than blazing the fact in large capitals. Apart from age and a disability with walking I am on an island where there are no art galleries. Not everyone can get to London and Scotland. I was just interested if these galleries include photographs as an art study. It is no big deal. Just blame Stefan for getting me interested in the subject. I am willing and wanting to be educated.
thoramay

I already feel that I have jumped into something that I cannot grasp. In its relationship to art, photography, to me, has a different element to, say, painting, sculpture and associated art work. I do not go to art galleries. Do they show photography art along side paintings and scupture work? My interest is in photography. Do I create art, or do I simply take a picture that is pleasing to some people. I would like comments to relate to photography as art. The greater picture that Whelmed has painted leaves me confused.
regards Thoramay

Whelmed. In one sense you are right.Politics and religion is best left out of a Forun, But. It depends in the context. Stefan and I are not discussing religion. I am expressing my viewpoint in relation to our debate regarding our approach to photography. I cannot divorce my approach from my beliefs. I am entitled to express this in context. There is a sense that in highlighting this you are creating conflict that is not there.
If you read through the whole thread you will discover just how polite and understanding both Stefan and I have approached the issue of how we are urged to take phoptographes.

Another But.. you are entitled to share your feelings and you will discover that you are welcomed here however we receive your comments.
regards thoramay.

Antidepressants did nothing for me. They are not the solution for everyone. Morality is something we have not touched on but my morality would never allow myself to experiment with substances that alter my personality. I believe that God put us on this earth to help, support and sustain our fellow beings, not to experiment with our health and future well being. Over and out.
regards Thoramay.

Having enjoyed a discussion with Stepan on creating art in photography, I would be interested in a concensus of what is art.

Is art something that is created by one person or even several people from within their own imagination or even a creative depiction of something that is not their own making such as a landscape or model study?

Or, Is art possible by taking a photograph of something that is a true representation of what was seen by the camera lens. Can the subject matter change the photograph into art?

i think it is universally accepted that we are born with gifts. We talk of a gifted child, better descibed as a special ability. All great artists are spoken of as gifted.

I speak of my faith as a 'believe beyond all human understanding'. Don't change that to 'taking something for granted'. No one knows where our soul goes at death. I simply hope that Jesus's words that He goes to prepare a place for us that where He is so shall we be is true. I canot prove it. You cannot disprove it.

If hate is an emotion, then it can be controlled and managed by dopamine in the way you claim other emotions are controlled. I do not believe this.

Some people are totally lacking in a sense of humour. Why, if it can be changed by chemical changes in the brain? It does not add up or support your theory.

It is interesting to exchange viewpoints but we are straying very far from your first question on why we create art in photography. We should agree to disagree and leave this thread to a testamony of how wonderfully different we are

thoramay

Your logic is flawed, dear Stefan. You avoid answering my question. You simply offer an explanation that satisfies you but has no real legitamacy. Evolution has no bearing on our soul(unless your deffinition of soul is different from the accepted one).
We agree that we have emotions. So! What drives us to use emotions, such as laughter. Some laugh, some do not. why? Some see photography as art, some do not, again Why?
Let's not draw religion into this as a a generality. I stated a personal viewpoint that would not draw blood from even the most fanatical follower. The simple answer is within you and within me. We simply are not clever enough to understand what motivates our actions. We simply respond.
It is not for us to know everything, but to simply enjoy what we find enjoyable, to laugh at what amuses us, to love and be loved, to suffer pain and bereavement all without needing answers as to why. To seek answers is natural. To take our quest to the point that we miss the gift within us is sad.
We do what we do because it comes naturally to us. We may have to work at it but the effort is enjoyable.
thoramay.

If you do not believe in God, or deity, I fear you will search in vain with no one able to answer your question to your satisfaction.
I will pose to you the following questions. What is Joy, love, laughter, sorrow, peace, hope, goodness, evil? The list is endless.
If you can answer this first question then I ask you again.
What drives us humans to laugh, feel sorrow, be evil, show goodness, know love, give love.
Why are you only concerned about what drives our creative nature?
The source of our creativity resides within our emotions. The same source that drives us to laugh also drives us to be creative. We call it human nature. It is our nature that makes us each different.
Where does that nature eminate from? There has to be a source. Nothing in this world exists without a source and reason. I believe that this source is a God figure, or call it what you will. Theologions express it as 'a belief that passes all understanding'.
Your question poses the bigger question, yet to be answsered. What are we? Why are we here? What purpose do we exist for? I know how I respond and rest in that other emotion that has no answer. HOPE,
thoramay

Do we take photos to create art?? or do we take photos because within us is a creative force that cannot be ignored. I would never be bold enough to claim my pictures as art. That is for someone else to make the judgement. As to what that driving force is, again it is individual. For me it is an appreciation of God's creation, a homage to His relationship with me. My first thought on waking is that I have the start of another day to drink in all the beauty of nature and to be able to react to its wonders. This is not for everybody but it is my driving force, a silent song that I sing all day and the knowledge that lifts my depession and enables my creative spirit.
Thoramay.

What facinates me most is the question as posed, and what motivates the question. Stefan. There is no diffinitive answer. you have asked yourself this question and it is within yourself to discover the answer. As you have discovered from responses, everyone has their own motivation which they sometimes struggles to define. There is within us all a sense of adventure, a need to discover, an urge, a longing, a motivational emotion all mixed up together. I express some of this through singing, through writing and photography. I would hate to spend time working out why because it is me, uniquely me. No one else can see through my eyes, no one else can interpret what I see. What they might do is to define what I produce as art, but that is seen through their eyes, not mine. What has challenged me through this thread is to stop and look harder at what I photograph and to even ask myself why. I doubt I will get answers.
Thoramay.