© 2002 by Frank Andreae, all rights reserved

How charming it would be if it were possible to cause these natural images to imprint themselves durably and remain fixed upon the paper.

— William Henry Fox Talbot

The discovery I announce to the public today is one of the small number which, by their principles, their results and the beneficial influence which they exert upon the arts, are counted among the most useful and extraordinary inventions.

— Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre

The production of a perfect picture by means of photography is an art. The production of a technically perfect negative is a science.

— Ferdinand Hurter

In 1876, I induced Dr. Ferdinand Hurter to take up photography as a recreation, but to a mind accustomed like his to methods of scientific precision, it became intolerable to practice an art which, at the time, was so entirely governed by rule of thumb, and of which the fundamental principles were so little understood. It was agreed that we should jointly undertake an investigation with the object of rendering photography a more quantitative science.

— Vero Charles Driffield

One photo out of focus is a mistake, ten photos out of focus are an experimentation, one hundred photos out of focus are a style.

— author unknown

To consult the rules of composition before making a picture is a little like consulting the law of gravity before going for a walk.

— Edward Weston

Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst.

— Henri Cartier-Bresson

Photography is 90% sheer, brutal drudgery. The other 10% is inspiration.

— Brett Weston

Compensating for lack of skill with technology is progress toward mediocrity. As technology advances, craftsmanship recedes. As technology increases our possibilities, we use them less resourcefully. The one thing we’ve gained is spontaneity, which is useless without perception.

— David Vestal