Reading Sontag's On Photography

© Photographed by A. Kev

"Humankind lingers unregenerately in Plato's cave, still reveling, its age-old habit, in mere images of the truth."

- Susan Sontag, On Photography

A.Kev, the person who took my photos posted in this and proceeding postings, must be one of the most sophisticated, most intelligent and most inspiring individuals I'd ever met, and he is one of the renowned photographers in this country.

I'd tried to read an introductory book of photography criticism (completed with some photos by Richard Avedon and other photographers that remain obscure to me), but soon put off by its uninspiring tone. Kev eventually recommended me Susan Sontag's On Photography, "a book on photography without a single photo", he said.

I found a copy of the book (Picador edition) in Pavilion's Times Bookstore, but haven't really start to read it until yesterday.

I am only starting to read the book, so nothing much is to be said at the moment, but so far in her cold, unpretentious writing, with a certain sang froid, I find it thought provoking and inspiring enough.

I am always interested in what photography is. Is it a partial (mis)representation of our perceived reality? Or is it the ape of this reality? Questions linger as I muse about the photos of my own corporeal form.