The post was written in 2012 when everybody was talking about Photoshop rather than AI

Digital photography has opened up new dimensions in creativity, allowing us to combine different photos, add elements such as planes, skies, and clouds, and create new meanings and senses. However, some people argue that this is cheating, while others see it as a legitimate way of visual communication. As a philosopher, I believe that photography cannot be an authentic representation of reality, even if it is a pure capture of light. Photography is possible only as a dimension of language. Only language can take away or add enough to make ontological elements acquire meaning or sense for the viewer who observes them.

The Arbitrariness of Photography

Whenever and wherever photography is captured, it is always an arbitrary selection of objects, people, animals, or things. This selection is limited by the photographer’s decision and is influenced by their intentions and the observer’s reception. Therefore, photography cannot be a realistic representation of reality.

The Fiction of Reality

However, photography is associated with reality itself from the very beginning. Light recording produces an illusion of the real reality, and some people insist that photos should not be touched or cultured. I believe that photos are merely communicators of ideas and that all reasonable means can be used to stress the message. The exception is reportage photography, which requires a more objective approach.

The Problem of Manipulation

The awareness that photos can be manipulated confronts us with a more serious problem, which has devastating consequences. We have become absolutely suspicious of almost every image, and instead of concentrating on the message of a single piece of work, we occupy ourselves with photo manipulation. Like jealous husbands or wives, we play the role of detectives and forget to challenge ourselves with a more important mission: understanding the message.