INSPIRATION
An Essay on Photography, Youth, and Happiness
YOUTH
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
“There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.” – Nelson Mandela
“I got my first camera at age 8 as a gift from my mom. It still is my most precious possession.” “I was advised to take on photography to help me with the eating disorder I struggled with as a teenager.” “At 18, I bought a cheap camera and went solo travelling around the world. I was never alone or scared.” “I was a weird kid until I got a camera. Then I found focus.”
The beginnings of our life-long friendship with the camera are never a game of chance. Photography comes our way because we need it. And, more often than not, it finds its way to our hearts early in life. Maybe some will frown upon this idea, but you know as well as I do that you don’t need a camera to fall in love with and be healed by photography. For example, it may be a shoebox full of old family photos, which mesmerized you with grand-grand-grandfathers’ whiskers, wartime snapshots, your beautiful grandmother in her 20s, and funny pictures of your mom as a baby. It’s so easy to dive into stories when feeling anxious, and have the shoebox, real or metaphorical, work its magic.
Banner image by Blake Meyer on Unsplash
I suggest that’s why we enjoy so much photographing representations of youth, such as babies and children, teenagers, baby animals, seedlings, buds, and even toys. It reminds us of our first encounters with photography and the amazing energy and hope it provided at the time. Because, let’s face it, we do photography primarily for us. It fuels us with artistic freedom, calms our inner storms, and gives us meaning and direction. At the same time, photographing representations of youth allows us to see the world with kindness and compassion. Youth is honest, courageous, and innocent, which makes it impossible for the photographer to be anything else when photographing it.
Images © Steve McCurry from his Instagram grid. See more at @stevemccurryofficial
The examples pour in. Following the words of Nelson Mandela, Steve McCurry travelled around the world to tell its stories by looking deep into the children’s eyes. Others, like Anne Geddes, choose to show an idealistic version of childhood, capturing portraits of babies surrounded by flowers and beautiful things. Photographer and skateboarder Josh Nice focuses on youth culture, documenting the raw energy specific to this age. There is no right or wrong angle, as youth has a way of mixing things up, finding happiness in the worst environments; bringing up tears in the most fortunate ones.
Images © Anne Geddes from her Instagram grid. See more at @annegeddesofficial
That’s why happiness is the binder between youth and photography. We start looking for happiness at an early age, and photography comes to our rescue in the form of a companion, activity, or shoebox full of stories. When young, things are simple, and we don’t need more than that. But we don’t stay young forever, and our way of looking for happiness becomes messy. We still want it but don’t know how to recognize it when we see it anymore. We live too fast, want too many things at once, and rely on what we know, leaving aside what we feel. Photography is forced to intervene again. It slows us down, reveals how little we actually know, and encourages us to focus on someone else. The process of taking a photo becomes our happiness. And here we are: focused on youth and its remarkable characteristics, connected with ourselves and others, and happy in the present moment. And all this thanks to photography.
Images © Josh Nice from his Instagram grid. See more at @joshnice
In the context of our current theme, Youth, turn the lens to the younger self and relate your photographic journey. As interesting as your subject may be on its own, the photograph is ultimately a dialog between the photographer and the viewer. Gather the happiness photography brings to you and pour it into your work, enriching the life of your viewers. The reward will be tenfold.
Created with ❤️
Words by Monica Radulescu
Photography © the author.
