摄影的精神层面和心理模型

有些时候我们在摄影作品里看到的景象，就是摄影师想表达的意思；而有些时候，我们看到的景象并不代表摄影师的意思，而其隐藏着的才是摄影师真正想表达的。按照Stephen Shore的说法就是描述层面与精神层面的一致性或不一致性。摄影作品有可能是深描述层而浅精神层，也有可能是深精神层却是浅描述层。优秀摄影师很多都注重深精神层，以摄影作品来表达自己的认知、思想，这与其他艺术家以自己的作品来表达自己类似。

Sometimes what we see is what the photographer wants to tell; other times, what implies in the photo is what the photographer wants to say. According to Stephen Shore, this is the congruity or the incongruity of depictive and mental levels. Some photographic works may have deep depictions with shallow mental meaning, but some are the opposite. A lot of excellent photographers focus on the mental level, expressing their understandings and ideas with their works. This is similar to other artists showing themselves in their own works.

在讨论这段理论时，印象最深刻的就是欣赏Frederick Sommer 的Glass, 1943, 我的老师说：你们真的以为Frederick Sommer 只是想记录一堆垃圾，一堆碎玻璃，玻璃瓶吗？你们看看拍摄这张照片的时间——1943年，正值二战期间，有了拍摄背景，你们就知道摄影师的用意有多深刻：以一堆烂玻璃来表达对战争的关注。有了深层次的含义表达成就了这幅的作品的优秀。

When talking about this theory, Frederick Sommer's Glass, 1943, gave me the most profound impression. My teacher said: Do you really think Frederick Sommer just wanted to record trash, broken glass, and bottles? Look at the time when this photo was made ---- 1943, during World War II. With the background, we understand how meaningful this is; using piles of broken glass to express the attention to the war. The deep meaning of this work made it great.

摄影师寥寥几个字甚至一个字不说，凭借画面就能表达出深邃的意义，这就是优秀的摄影作品。

Without even using a single word, the photographer carries out the message, this is what excellent photographic works are.

我们欣赏摄影作品，不仅仅停留在画面好看的浅描述层面，而更多的要去读懂摄影师的表达，当然，这是对摄影师的考验，如何用视觉元素表达思想。徒有美丽的视觉元素，缺乏思想表达的作品是淡然无味的，也是很容易被遗忘的。

We must go beyond the shallow depictive level and understand the photographer's meaning when looking at works. Of course, this is also a challenge for the photographer to use visual elements to express ideas. Purely eye-pleasing but meaningless works are dull and easily forgotten.

当摄影师想要做到对精神层次的表达要与描述层分离时，就要关注摄影优势点的选择（到底在哪里拍照）、框架（到底包含了什么）、时间（到底什么时间按下快门），聚焦（焦平面到底强调什么）。焦点是精神层次和描述层次之间的桥梁：镜头的焦点、眼睛的焦点、注意力的焦点、思想的焦点。

When the photographers want to separate the mental level and depictive level, they must focus on the vantage point(where to shoot), frame(what to contain), time(when to press the shutter), and focus(what the focus plane emphasizes). The focus is the bridge connecting the mental and depictive levels: the focus of the lens, eye, attention, and mind.

Berenice Abbott 的Department of Docks, New York City, 1936, 是浅精神深描述的典型案例，一个街景片段记录了一切。所有意思表达都包含在图片里，没有“画外有意”，是浅精神的，然而，视线随描述的场景远去，具有了深描述的特征。

Berenice Abbott's Department of Docks, New York City, 1936, is a classic example of shallow mental level and deep depictive level work. A street scene records everything, all of the ideas are expressed through one image, there are no "implies", it is shallow in meanings, but as the sight moves on, it shows traits of works of deep mental level.

摄影作品是摄影师心理的反应，摄影师在自己内心都建立了自己的心理模式，是对世界的洞察、调节和理解的结果，拍摄时这种心理模式直觉无意识性的体现出来了，让摄影师对优势点、框架、时间等描述性的因素置于心理模式的控制之下。

Photographic works are reactions of the photographer's mind. They have a mental model that observes, alters, and understands the world when taking photos, in which they take vantage points, frame, time, and depictive elements under control.

摄影作品是一张纸，一片金属，是由物理和化学性质决定的，这是最基本的。它记录的视觉元素是在描述一件事情、人物、场景，时间与空间，这是摄影的第二层面。而在描述性的背后，有可能具有精神层的意思表达，可以深挖思想；也可能看到什么就是什么，一览无余，精神层停留在表面；从物理层、描述层上升到第三层面。摄影师在执行摄影时，受自己内心的心理模式控制，如何选景构图，何时按下快门。

Photographic work is a sheet of paper or metal, it is determined by its physical and chemical properties, and this is the most basic. The visual element that is recorded is depicting an event, a character, a scene, time, and space, this is the second layer of photography. Behind its depictive level, it might lay the mental meanings; but it can also just be as it is seen. The third level rises from the physical properties and depictive level. When photographers are conducting shootings, they are monitored by their mental model on how to select scenes and when to press the shutter.

Stephen Shore 说：摄影的每一层次是被前面的一个层次决定的。印刷品为摄影图像的视觉参数提供了物理框架。形式决定本身就是图像的自然产物，是心理模型用来在图像上留下深刻印象的工具。

Stephen Shore said that every layer of photography is determined by the preceding layer. The printing material provided a physical frame for the visual properties. The formal decision is the natural product of images, a tool that mental model uses to leave deep impressions.

若摄影师希望自己的作品能被人记忆，被人传颂，成为经典，就多去赋予它精神层的意思表达，以区别普通大众随意都可以做到的对相同场景千篇一律的记录。

If photographers want their works to be remembered, passed down, and become classics, then endow the works with more mental meanings to differentiate them with easily-achievable plain records.

摄影师，不仅仅要修炼摄影技术，更要修炼自己的内心，修炼自己的思想，修炼用摄影技术来对思想进行表达。

As a photographer, not only is practicing the photographic techniques important, but the minds also have to be enriched. Train the thoughts and practice using photography to express the ideas.