No, you don’t have to have a camera. But it can help. It has helped me to be more aware of our Visual World, the sphere of Things to See and the very real (but seldom talked about) nutriment “Food for Sight”.
I would say I am enjoying life more since I started to photograph. Of course there is a shadow side to this; turning into a maniacal Hunter, always on the lookout for the Next Great Pic.
But my hunter instincts have mellowed, I am more relaxed. Still, I notice that before I started going around with a camera I noticed less of the beauty of the world, was more visually undernourished.
So I can recommending photography for the jaded among us, we who risk falling into the well or Resignation or Nothing New Under The Sun.
There is so much joy to be gathered by looking at the world. And most of it is free. A car costs money, food costs money. But there is a universe of beauty for our eyes that nobody is charging for.
Just looking at each other can be a source of happiness. Look at the trees and their autumn colors, all the smartly designed everyday objects, a sports car, a warm smile, handsome shoes, a lovely coiffure.
Even a wind turbine can give visual joy. It is not “sweet” (many photographs I see are too sweet) but then we wouldn’t want to just eat sugar and cakes all day. Our eyes also need salty, sour and bitter sights.
Even umami.
