An Epiphany – Part 2

Yesterday I revealed that this is the keystone of my photography:

“You are infinitely important to people you will never meet, including yourself.”

I’ve had quite a bit of feedback today. All of it good, especially when I’ve explained what I mean and how it could possibly relate to photography.

The best explanation I can give you is this photograph, which says it all:

My philosophy of photography. (c) Roger Overall 2010

I can’t explain it any clearer.

…

Okay, not everyone in the audience is getting it, so I’ll have to spell it out.

The concept works both for private individuals and for business clients.

Private individuals first. Answer me this question: Would you like to have great-great-great grandchildren?

Most of us would. I know I’d like to.

Thing is, you’ll never meet them. You’d like to think that your line will continue that far into the future, though. We’re talking around AD 2150-2200, give or take, it doesn’t really matter. What matters is that you are not going to live that long. I don’t care how much muesli you eat. You are never going to be invited round to their place.

Nevertheless, you could not be more important to them. Without you they will never exist. Just like you wouldn’t have been here were it not for your own great-great-great grandparents. Look at the cup cakes and the stand in the photograph above. Without each individual tier below it, the next tier up wouldn’t be able to stand. You’re the bottom tier, your descendants are the ones higher up.

And do you think that your distant descendants will want to know about you?

Of course they will. Unless you invade Poland or something, in which case they’re going to change their names and pretend they were hewn from pure amber by gypsy elves.

You get where I’m going with this?

More than any other form of photography, documentary photography is a wonderful way for you to connect with your unseen ancestors. For instance, the story of your wedding day told properly through photographs will reveal who you were, what you did, your history on that day, the emotions you felt. It is a window from the distant future all the way back to your past. It provides information that your great-great-great grandchildren will be so grateful for.

If you doubt this at all, just imagine having the kind of documentary photographs you’ve seen on this blog of your own great-great-great grandparents’ wedding. Tell me you wouldn’t cherish that.

That’s why it’s important to me that my private clients understand that their lives and their history have massive value, and because of that they are infinitely important to people they will never meet.

In part 3 I’ll explain why I added “including yourself”.

And in part 4 I’ll show how this works for businesses.