John M. Setzler, Jr.

Silence remains, inescapably, a form of speech. — Susan Sontag

True silence is the rest of the mind; it is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment. — William Penn

Silence is a true friend that never betrays. — Confucius

Silence is a great source of strength. — Lao Tzu

Nowadays, most men lead lives of noisy desperation. — James Thurber

A nature photographer, I am not. I have never aspired to be. I have lots of nature photographs in my archives, but I never consider myself to be particularly interested in the notion. I’m not really sure why. Most photographers seem to really enjoy shooting nature and landscapes. For me, being there is great. Experiencing the location for myself is good for my soul. A photograph can’t and won’t replace that. It might be good for a memory or two, but it won’t replace the other dimensions of standing on a piece of ground and witnessing the sight first hand. If I make photos while I’m enjoying some random place, I can show my friends and family and say I was here. The photograph, however, won’t tell anyone how I felt at that moment in time. The true dynamics of the moment the shutter opens become flat and less inspiring for me upon later review. I suppose that a visual representation of a place I have been in the past just doesn’t provide me with enough inspiration to photograph it with any real intention.

One of my favorite photographers of all time made this statement:

The world is going to pieces and people like Adams and Weston are photographing rocks! — Henri Cartier-Bresson

This statement, even though it was made in the 1930s, is an idea that we could apply to just about any period of time. Photographers like Cartier-Bresson preferred to focus on the human element in their endeavors. After I started dabbling in sports and photojournalism, I could see my interests moving in that direction as well. My biggest stumbling block in this endeavor in the beginning was simply shyness. I wasn’t as comfortable setting myself up to interact with and photograph strangers. It didn’t take me very long to get over this issue. In fact, once I got over that hump, I found myself being able to approach anyone at almost any time to ask for photographs. Another thing I learned quickly is that people aren’t as afraid of photographers as photographers are of people :) People tend to be more afraid of photographers when the guy with the camera is working in stealth mode with a long lens and hiding from the action in some way. When I approach a group of people with my camera in hand, I’ll generally just start shooting photos and then answer any questions that may pop up, and they usually do. When the questions from my subjects start to come out, this is when I get something personal to carry with me. When I explain to people why I’m making photos, whether it be for journalism or personal reasons, I’ll usually get to hear their story and learn something extra about them that I would have never gotten otherwise.

The interaction I have with the people I photograph is much more interesting to me in terms of photography than the interaction I may have with a landscape or nature photo. When I look at the photos of people again in the future, the interaction comes back to me more readily than those from the nature and landscape images. That makes me happy.

I haven’t been into photography very long compared to a lot of people. I never know what to tell people who ask me what kind of photographer I am. I always seem to respond with something inconclusive and general. I have told people that I like to photograph lots of different things. That stops today… As of today, I’m a people photographer.