Sam Abell Quotes

Powerful Sam Abell for Daily Growth

About Sam Abell

Sam Abell (born May 18, 1945) is an American photographer, writer, and filmmaker known for his versatile body of work spanning over five decades. Born in Jacksonville, Florida, Abell grew up in the South and developed an early interest in photography, often using a Brownie camera borrowed from his grandmother. After completing his undergraduate studies at Duke University, Abell worked as a staff photographer for National Geographic magazine for 30 years (1976-2006). During this period, he produced groundbreaking photographic essays on diverse topics such as the American West, the Great Barrier Reef, and the construction of the Sears Tower. His work was recognized with numerous awards, including three first prizes in the prestigious World Press Photo contest. Abell's photography is characterized by a keen eye for detail, a deep understanding of composition, and an ability to tell compelling stories through images. He often explores themes of human interaction with nature, social issues, and the passing of time. His major works include "The American West" (1985), "Einstein: The Man and His Photography" (2003), and "The National Parks: An American Legacy" (2004). In addition to his photographic work, Abell has authored several books, including "Seeing Gardens" (1986) and "Sam Abell's Guide to Photography" (2001). He has also directed films such as "The American West: A Photographic Journey" (1987) and "A Day in the Life of America" (2005), which documented everyday life across the United States on July 4, 2003. Today, Sam Abell continues to work as a photographer, writer, and filmmaker. He is considered one of the most influential photographers of his generation, and his work remains an enduring testament to the power of photography to capture and interpret the world around us.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever... it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything."

This quote emphasizes the emotional significance and lasting power of photography. Sam Abell suggests that through photography, one can convey feelings, memories, and connections in a tangible form. Unlike human memory, which often fades over time, photographs retain these moments forever, allowing us to revisit and appreciate them long after we've forgotten other details from our past.


"The best images are the ones that reside deep within us and demand to be made."

This quote suggests that the most impactful photographs are not merely the result of a casual observation, but rather, they originate from a deeply personal place within the photographer. These images don't just present themselves; instead, they emanate from an inner compulsion or emotional resonance that demands to be expressed and materialized through photography. In essence, Abell emphasizes the importance of the artist's connection and investment in their work for it to achieve a profound impact on its viewers.


"To photograph: it's an adventure. To photograph: it's a search for the realities of life... the special between the ordinary."

Sam Abell's quote suggests that photography is more than just capturing images; it's an exploration of life, a pursuit of reality beyond the commonplace. It implies that through the lens, photographers seek to uncover unique aspects, hidden truths, or the "special" within the ordinary, transforming everyday scenes into extraordinary artifacts that reflect life in its purest and most authentic form.


"There is only one quality more important than talent, love. Love for what you are doing and discipline to do it day in and day out. Talent without an equal amount of passion is like a ship sailing with no wind."

Sam Abell's quote emphasizes the importance of both talent and passion in achieving success, suggesting that even if one possesses great talent, it's insufficient without an equally strong passion for one's work. He analogizes this as a ship sailing without wind – though skillful, it can't move forward without the driving force of love and dedication. In essence, he underscores the idea that talent is vital but should be accompanied by a genuine love and commitment to turn it into sustained effort and progress.


"It takes a lot of imagination to be truly frightened, taken out of yourself and put into an unfamiliar world."

This quote by Sam Abell suggests that fear, or being genuinely afraid, requires one to engage their creativity and imaginative capabilities to step outside their comfort zone and enter an alien environment. In other words, it implies that a vivid imagination allows us to anticipate and envision potential threats or discomfort in unfamiliar situations, thus fostering fear.


When I first went to 'National Geographic,' I thought I was the least qualified person to step through the doors. But because of my parents and the culture of continual learning they imposed on us, I later came to believe I was the most qualified person who ever worked there.

- Sam Abell

Thought, Through, Imposed, Qualified

For sheer majestic geography and sublime scale, nothing beats Alaska and the Yukon. For culture, Japan. And for all-around affection, Australia.

- Sam Abell

Nothing, Japan, Majestic, Scale

I wanted life to be episodic. I wanted to be a magazine photographer and I was willing to do what it took to become that.

- Sam Abell

Wanted, Willing, Took, Episodic

My father taught me photography. It was his hobby, and we had a small darkroom in the fruit cellar of our basement. It was the kind of makeshift darkroom that was only dark at night.

- Sam Abell

Small, Basement, Darkroom, Cellar

'Woman on the Plaza,' with its distinct horizon, snow-like surfaces, wintry wall, stunning sunlight, sharp shadows, and hurrying figure, would become the most biographical of my photographs - an abstract image of the landscape and life of northern Ohio where I grew up and first practiced photography.

- Sam Abell

Woman, Ohio, Distinct, Abstract

There are grander and more sublime landscapes - to me. There are more compelling cultures. But what appeals to me about central Montana is that the combination of landscape and lifestyle is the most compelling I've seen on this earth. Small mountain ranges and open prairie, and different weather, different light, all within a 360-degree view.

- Sam Abell

Small, About, Compelling, Appeals

As I have practiced it, photography produces pleasure by simplicity. I see something special and show it to the camera. A picture is produced. The moment is held until someone sees it. Then it is theirs.

- Sam Abell

Pleasure, Show, Held, Camera

There are a lot of ways to be expressive in life, but I wasn't good at some of them. Music, for instance. I was a distinct failure with the cello. Eventually, my parents sold the cello and bought a vacuum cleaner. The sound in our home improved.

- Sam Abell

Sound, Some, Instance, Cello

Life rarely presents fully finished photographs. An image evolves, often from a single strand of visual interest - a distant horizon, a moment of light, a held expression.

- Sam Abell

Expression, Image, Held, Fully

My parents, grandmother and brother were teachers. My mother taught Latin and French and was the school librarian. My father taught geography and a popular class called Family Living, the precursor to Sociology, which he eventually taught. My grandmother was a beloved one-room school teacher at Knob School, near Sonora in Larue County, Ky.

- Sam Abell

Father, Sociology, County, Beloved

I think of myself as a writer who photographs. Images, for me, can be considered poems, short stories or essays. And I've always thought the best place for my photographs was inside books of my own creation.

- Sam Abell

Thought, I Think, Considered, Essays

My best work is often almost unconscious and occurs ahead of my ability to understand it.

- Sam Abell

Work, Unconscious, Almost, Best Work

There isn't an aspect of book creation I don't enjoy, and there has always been a book in my life to dream about or work on.

- Sam Abell

My Life, Always, Been, Creation

How the visual world appears is important to me. I'm always aware of the light. I'm always aware of what I would call the 'deep composition.' Photography in the field is a process of creation, of thought and technique. But ultimately, it's an act of imaginatively seeing from within yourself.

- Sam Abell

Deep, Thought, Technique, Creation

In almost every photograph I have ever made, there is something I would do to complete it. I take that to be the spirit hole or the deliberate mistake that's in a Navajo rug to not be godlike, but to be human.

- Sam Abell

Mistake, Almost, Rug, Hole

Essentially what photography is is life lit up.

- Sam Abell

Photography, Lit, Up, Essentially

I had luck, but I worked hard and I suffered. It's not just photography I'm talking about. It's about whatever dream you want it to be.

- Sam Abell

Luck, Want, About, Suffered

Photography, alone of the arts, seems perfected to serve the desire humans have for a moment - this very moment - to stay.

- Sam Abell

Alone, Desire, Very, Humans

A mad, keen photographer needs to get out into the world and work and make mistakes.

- Sam Abell

World, Mad, Needs, Keen

It matters little how much equipment we use; it matters much that we be masters of all we do use.

- Sam Abell

Matters, How, How Much, Equipment

My dad had been an ardent amateur photographer, and he taught me to compose a photograph from the back to the front, and then populate the picture.

- Sam Abell

Been, Ardent, Dad, Photograph

Editorial photography has to be energetic and visually competitive.

- Sam Abell

Energetic, Editorial, Photography

I was known as a 35-mm photographer with a view-camera mentality.

- Sam Abell

Photographer, Known, Mentality

The best lesson I was given is that all of life teaches, especially if we have that expectation.

- Sam Abell

Best, Given, Teaches, Lesson

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