Even though I teach with 35mm, my method takes people by surprise, because it isn't fast, and it isn't about hardware or software, or even great results. It's about great process. Sam Abell More Quotes by Sam Abell More Quotes From Sam Abell [ My time and our common culture] it's what I'm photographing, and I'm very involved with that. Sam Abell my-timecommonculture What I'm interested in is modern American history. I'm taken with the changes that have occurred in America in my lifetime. Sam Abell takenlifetimeamerica I'm interested in smokers standing on ledges, and big box stores, the rise of the suburbs, and the hollowing out of small towns. Self-storage. Things that didn't exist 50 years ago. Our common culture. What we have agreed is OK to live with. Sam Abell selfcultureyears In my first class at the University of Kentucky, my American Literature professor came in, and the first sentence out of his mouth was "The central theme of American Literature is an attempt to reconcile what we've done to the New World." wrote that down in my notebook, and thought, "What is he talking about?" But that's what I think about now. The New World and what we've done to it. Sam Abell kentuckynotebookthinking The thing with my workshops is, photography is a thoughtful process. In an atmosphere of fast photography, and generally thoughtless, quick, automatic photography, I think that there is an interest in the slowed down, thoughtful approach. Sam Abell thoughtfulphotographythinking This might seem off the track, but an interesting thing to me that others could talk about better than I, but one of the growth areas in photographic education has been the so-called slow photography. Sam Abell trackphotographyinteresting I can't speak for other photographers, but the photographers who went forward strongly when the so-called "official" part of their career ended, to me, were those who had taught. Teaching enriches and enlivens one's work. Sam Abell taughtcareersteaching It actually has transcended my career at the Geographic, so that when my career there ended, I had momentum as a teacher, and a belief in photographic education at the workshop level. Sam Abell momentumcareersteacher I think that it's workshops, honestly, that have kept me keen about photography, and about my photography. My career as a workshop photographer came while I was at the Geographic in the late 70's, and has continued consistently since then. Sam Abell careersphotographythinking I was asked by a student what my most significant accomplishment was at National Geographic, after thirty years, and I said that my career came to an appropriate close, and I still loved photography. Not everybody who spends their career at anything ends up fascinated and involved with it. Sam Abell careersphotographyyears A very big part of the life of a photograph is the afterlife. Sam Abell afterlifebigsphotograph First of all, I appropriate photographs.In presenting the Richard Prince photograph I tried to be as neutral as I could be. I put down the fact of it. I wanted it to be the same thing he wanted it to be, an open ended invitation to think about authorship, and who owns a created work. So I pair it with my appropriated picture. Sam Abell pairsfirststhinking Teaching has never been far from my life. It's the most natural thing I do. Apparently, as I said, I cannot not do it. Sam Abell teachingnaturalsaid I was giving a lecture and I said, that's enough about The Photographic Life, meaning my biography, now let's talk about the life of a photograph. And in that one instant I got the title for a potential next book. Sam Abell meaning-of-lifegivingbook When assignments were over, photography continued. One of the primary reasons it did was that I wanted and needed to have fresh work. Also, it's very stimulating to be around non-professional photographers. They're the ones with the purest flame burning about their photography. I appreciate that. Sam Abell appreciateflamesphotography My Dad took a workshop from a photographer who worked at the Toledo Blade, a newspaper I delivered. I knew this photographer's work. My Dad took a night class from him at the University of Toledo. Without that class, I wouldn't have become a photographer, because my Dad came home and taught me what he learned in class. Sam Abell dadhomenight Yes, there are billions more photographers, and billions more photographs every day, but who's building up a point of view? Who's photographing with intention, and whose body of work will sustain itself and survive? Sam Abell building-upbodyviews The class that I teach is called "The Life of a Photograph." It takes up the question, of the billion photographs that were taken today, how many will have a life, and why? So the new reality has made the question more pertinent, not less pertinent. Sam Abell takenclassreality I had a book come out several years ago, when there were no blogs. This is a mark to me about how the environment has changed. Sam Abell environmentbookyears [In the late 80's] that's the first time I heard about that astonishing idea [that most photographs would be taken on telephones]. And now I've been watching the tsunami of images. Sam Abell takenwould-beideas
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