As a photographer a recent post on Google+ by David duChemin really resonated with me.  He has captured in his short but passionate manifesto video the real aspects and the art of photography. (I have included a link to the video at the end of this post)

Photographs are made not taken. To some that phrase could mean there is too much post production work.  To me it is simply a tool to enhance what you saw through the eyes of your heart.
What I like about the video is the way it captures the true essence of photography, the passion for capturing a real moment beyond the usual background noise of camera type, competition, technical details etc.  Photography at that level is like HiFi buffs listening to the equipment rather than the music.

I am lucky in that photography is part of my livelihood. However, there was a time when photographic magazines would call me up (or photography students) and ask all sorts of technical questions about photographs they had seen on my website.   How did you set up the shot, what F stop, lighting do you did you use?
I felt saying like saying that I took it through the eyes of my heart, but that would sound rather fluffy and so I hunted for the technical details in the digital file.
We do need a basic knowledge of how the camera works, but much of what we learn in photography is by taking lots of photos and experimenting.  Using the music analogy again, we learn to improvise by stepping away from the notes on the page.

We still hear the phrase ‘he/she has a good eye for photography’ and this to me is still a true measure.  We can get lost in the technical aspects of photography and start to worry that we are doing something wrong and in turn lose some of our sense of wonder.

David also mentions having this sense of wonder and we can learn a lot from the first photos we took when we were younger or when you see photographs taken by children.  That sense of wonder becomes more apparent when you kneel down and look at the world as a child sees it.
A good photograph can stop someone is their tracks, without words it speaks to an inner desire.  It could be an inspirational landscape, a dish from a local restaurant or a hotel room.  Whatever the image it is an opportunity to share and connect to others, it is a gift.

Link to Video – David duChemin Craft and Vision Manifesto 

Thanks

Phil