Article By – Chinar Tekchandani

Photography is an art, and like most other forms of art, this art can also have a purpose. The purpose behind this art can be different for different people. For some, it adds delight and joy to their lives, for others it may be their love for documentation. It is always good to explore yourself and understand why you like certain things. Art in every form usually gives people an insight about themselves and also a direction in which one could go.

Photography is a global language of art that can be understood without words. It can add meaning, responsibility, fun, creativity, love, laughter and an array of different emotions in the photographer’s and viewer’s life. The most important function of photography is usually communication. However, it’s functionality in terms of communication can vary. Very few people click photographs for the purpose of solely pleasing themselves. Some people do it for the memories, others do it to show more people, in order to inform, educate, entertain or reform.

If you wish to understand why you like photography and what photography means to you, you can ponder upon the following points. Remember, a purpose will help you to develop your skills more gracefully.

• The Delightful Art / Art for Delight

Do aesthetically appealing images please you? Does making home decor prettier than it actually is, give you pleasant feelings? Do you like to go around clicking images of objects in homes, cafes and offices? If your answer to all these questions is yes, your purpose behind photography is the art for delight. Great decor, infrastructure and interesting objects are the way to your heart. Clicking pictures of this kind will not only give you happiness but also give others a perspective on how things appear to you and in what different ways can they be perceived.

• The Art of Documentation / Art for Documentation

Do you like to tell stories or create memories? Do you crave to store facts from the present that may turn into lessons of history in the future? Would you like to create an impact by documenting events or emotions? In future, would you want to look back at your photographs and re-live them? If your answer to one or more of these questions is yes, you probably love photography in order to document memories, facts, events or stories. These pictures will create absolute joy in your heart and impact others hearts.

• The Commemoration Art / Art for Commemoration

Commemoration is an action or fact of commemorating or celebrating a dead person or remembering an event. Is photography remembering events for you? Do you like participating in commemoration events? Do important, popular or famous people bring in you the zeal to click photographs? If yes, you know what your purpose behind photography is. You like to capture people or events that should be remembered. It is a purpose that can help you and people to never forget events that are important.

• The Art to Self-Expression / Art for Self-Expression

Self-expression can come to people in different ways and activities. For some, it comes via painting and it may come through writing or speaking for others. Photography is also one such mode that can enhance self-expression. It is an art form that can speak to you or help you speak to others. Do you believe that clicking pictures helps you express yourself better? Or that it helps you convey emotions that would have been difficult to be put into words? If that’s what photography is for you, your purpose might be self expression. This purpose can change your communication skills for the better. It can help others understand you and your beliefs in a way that words would not have been able to say.

• The Art for Ritualistic Beliefs / Art for worship and rituals

People say that faith is unseen but it can be felt. Does photography restore your faith when you click images of different rituals, deities or pujas? Do you like to show people what you see when you are documenting an act of worship or a ritualistic ceremony? Can you make faith seen in your own little ways via photography? If your answer is affirmative, your purpose might be your faith. The more you believe, the more you click. The more you click, the more you feel fulfilled. This purpose can take you a long way in staying true to yourself.

• The Art for Art / Art for Art’s Sake

It is absolutely not important to have a purpose behind everything. Sometimes hobbies should not be converted into modes of earning or being productive. Art is supposed to lighten you without judging you for its quality. If you like photography because you just do, then why not?! That’s okay too. It’s an art and it’s meant for everybody. So pick your camera up and click pictures of whatever you like. Sometimes you don’t need a purpose.

Go ahead and figure yourselves out, decide what’s the best for you and if you like clicking pictures no matter what the purpose is, DO NOT STOP! Keep clicking and enjoying!