Introspection Through Photography Practice
16 FEB, 2026Approaching photography not from a documentary or marketing standpoint, but from curiosity, made me think about how this tool is being used in my hands when I’m not limited to a specific expectation of the end result. Looking inside. I am limited only by my personal filters of introspection and my awareness of the topics that run through my head on regular basis. The camera captures my points of interest during different periods of life, making it already a subjective journey for a potential viewer. A long photo sequence becomes something to process later, to understand what it is there for me to discover.
By going through the archives, walks within monthly span, I can identify a phantom thread connecting my photographs through one or several recurring themes, what was on my mind at that time. At first glance, wishful thinking led me to believe there was some magic happening around me. But after hearing about the “Point of Departure” concept from Ralph Gibson, it became more of an intentional craft. An intentional craft of finding scenes, shots, and characters through the deliberate filtering that happens in my thought process while I’m out there taking pictures, and then the randomness of life throws an additional layer of magic on top of it. Supporting statistical chance with life’s gifts. What does the viewer see without reading my context? What personal filters does he or she apply to my image?
If my personal experiences revolve around fragility and closeness, I am more than sure to find them out there on the street in different scenarios. The question is whether I can find the right combination of scene, light, moment, and my ability to capture it all together. But the gift of using the camera as a tool for introspection is that even if I miss a great shot, I still take many “failed” photos while processing my topics of interest. I get closer to a personal revelation or insight about a particular theme. It is hard to remember this in the moment, but let this post serve as a reminder. Even in an image that fails by conventional standards, there can be a symbol, an angle, or a hand movement that has its worth.
I am comparing photography to my tennis past a lot, where even the best win around 52-54% of the points, lose every week, and photography comes to a new a level where the efficiency of taken shots is even lower. So, to rely on the camera not only for the final product, as a sum of chance and skill, but as a tool that allows exploration. To find additional joy in the process. To bring home not only photographs, but something new about myself and the world. I find that the editing process at home after often serves as a final sorting box for the puzzles that were collected on the street. Now comes another challenge: how to work with the archive of photos piling up and structure them in a meaningful way. It probably becomes even more interesting with older archives to decipher the photographs again from new perspective.
Next time you’re on the street, think about what has been on your mind lately and look at the result in the photos you took on that walk.
Today’s Writing Soundtrack:
Philipp Glass - Fish
The Big Ship - Brian Eno
If this sparked any thoughts, I’d be glad to hear from you on Insta @rutnytskyi