Thesis Statements

1. Throughout history the role of art in photography has been proven to capture more than just a visual image of a place, time, moment or even feeling. Its been framed by photographers that believe photography can be an art form all by its self. With the help of lighting, camera angels and other fundamental elements that go alone within a photo, the message that falls into it develops a story of its own. The truth comes out in a way only the photographer themselves understand, and its up to the observer to translate the meaning behind it. We all have our own ways of reading the truth and that's what makes it so impacting to discover. Like reading a book, getting caught up in the story of why such a piece was created helps to broaden the outlook of a certain feeling or idea, allowing the mind to expand on a whole new content of imagination. 
2.  As we take steps into the photography world we discover more and more messages that are brought to our attention. Our society is reflected in the photos purposely taken by photographers, because unlike them, we do not pay attention and document the little things that are apart of our bigger world. For example, kids playing on the street with trash cans and pieces of wood with nails sticking out of them would be a brief indication of the societies poverty. A picture of a couple together with the sunlight shining behind them can translate into multiple sentimental thoughts and pre-notions of the two individuals, however it's how they socially take a role, are the couple happy? Are they impacted by something else to be positioned they way they are to each other, and so on. What we don't see from our day to day lives can be reflected in photographs highlighting key images of reality in our culture, and allowing us to see and feel outside the box of visual understandings.
3. Susan Sontags defines the meaning of photography in her book multiple ways. To her, its a whole another way of living. Susan captures more than just the intellectual part of photography as a historic piece but also an element of society. She see's the meaning to take a photograph and identify its social impact on itself, its the power to caught a moment that is personally appealing, something that is striking as unique. Susan talks about tourism and how its been such a thriving social event, that no one would think of leaving their camera behind. Why? She calls it, "memento mori", a way that photographing pulls one in to participate with another person's (or things) morality, meaning a way to physically and emotionally capture a moment. Photographers allow themselves to understand what is is like to freeze frame a moment in time and forever hold on to that feeling that was framed, catching the sentimental properties of that photo and display its every detail from an artistic point of view.