I reckon Vincent van Gogh ticks all five of your life extenders, but he died age 37! If only he'd taken photos instead of painting those crap landscapes and portraits of his!
And on the subject of irony, let’s not forget that Roland Barthes was run over by an ambulance after writing a book about a mysterious photograph of his mother.
What a great post! I have thought the same thing, given some of the ones I have been lucky enough to run into. Marc Riboud passed on at 93, was one of my favourites. Berengo Gardin maybe my all time favourite passed away only recently at 94. The king of colour Franco Fontana is still with us at 91.
Apropos nothing; I think a fixed lens makes you move more and those that are engaged in humanist photography seem to be very active to get their photographs. Stats are stats, but one can choose to believe! No?
What a mind buzzing piece of writing. Thank you! I would love to believe photographers (like myself) live longer, but unfortunately I might be destined to follow my genes to the grave early. But... I fully believe, that we get more out of life. We know that the fleetings moments never return.
Man, I thought creatives were always doomed to die early..this is good news! Now all i gotta do is not get hit by a bus whilst i'm taking photographs or be bludgeoned to death by an unwilling subject or fall down a man hole and any other number of potential street hazards and i'll have a long life ahead of me..
I had know idea that some of the photographers you mentioned were still alive? Duane Michals, for example. Wow!
Some of the reasons you mentioned make, of course, sense: purpose, exercise, outdoor time, people is definitely a general recipe for staying healthy, but the recipe seems to be used by these photographers quite well.
I want this to be true, and I suspect there are the same percentage to be found among musicians/painters and poets , loving what you do helps and makes however many years you have more satisfying , but a strong constitution and lucky genes probably the key!
Interesting. My perception, with the recent deaths of Chris Killip and Tom Stoddart, was that they died too young, but you make very good points and I’m now convinced - photography is good for most of us.
One thing that I didn’t have time to include, but wanted to, was the role of chemicals in health of photographers. Not sure if that was the case with Killip but there are some worries about Edward Weston.
That was my theory. There seemed to be a recent pattern with British documentary photographers getting cancer in their 60s. But perhaps it was coincidence. I hope so.
Great post Neil, fascinating research and valid reasons - I must admit I've had that belief too so this research puts it all in context. Thanks for sharing.
I reckon Vincent van Gogh ticks all five of your life extenders, but he died age 37! If only he'd taken photos instead of painting those crap landscapes and portraits of his!
See the footnote!
All those bits of soul you take from ppl by photographing them add up making the photographer extra soul-filled
Shhhh don’t tell
And on the subject of irony, let’s not forget that Roland Barthes was run over by an ambulance after writing a book about a mysterious photograph of his mother.
What a great post! I have thought the same thing, given some of the ones I have been lucky enough to run into. Marc Riboud passed on at 93, was one of my favourites. Berengo Gardin maybe my all time favourite passed away only recently at 94. The king of colour Franco Fontana is still with us at 91.
Apropos nothing; I think a fixed lens makes you move more and those that are engaged in humanist photography seem to be very active to get their photographs. Stats are stats, but one can choose to believe! No?
Nice one!
Thanks Søren! Fjxed lens is a good variable to include. I think there is enough data there for a proper statistician to analyse.
What a mind buzzing piece of writing. Thank you! I would love to believe photographers (like myself) live longer, but unfortunately I might be destined to follow my genes to the grave early. But... I fully believe, that we get more out of life. We know that the fleetings moments never return.
Also, thanks for the essay/book tip (Carpenter)!
Thanks Nani! Fingers crossed. I am ambivalent about Carpenter but saw that a copy is for sale from a substacker @pierrefd : https://substack.com/@pierrefd/note/c-164540006
Man, I thought creatives were always doomed to die early..this is good news! Now all i gotta do is not get hit by a bus whilst i'm taking photographs or be bludgeoned to death by an unwilling subject or fall down a man hole and any other number of potential street hazards and i'll have a long life ahead of me..
🤞
Interesting! The question is: do I want to live that long? Anyway,, great read! Thank you!
Thanks Susanne! Likewise!! Though a friend once told me: "Who wants to live to be 100? The man who is 99."
I had know idea that some of the photographers you mentioned were still alive? Duane Michals, for example. Wow!
Some of the reasons you mentioned make, of course, sense: purpose, exercise, outdoor time, people is definitely a general recipe for staying healthy, but the recipe seems to be used by these photographers quite well.
Nice theory you have put out there! :)
Great post and interesting post!
Thanks Manuela!!! It was a fun exercise to write ... though one that stopped me doing exercise.
:)
I love photography but it’s not without its dangers…
One of my recent articles outlines how photos may not be as accurate as you think
https://open.substack.com/pub/jordannuttall/p/historic-forged-photos?r=4f55i2&utm_medium=ios
Terrific post, Neil. Not only can photography help us get old, but Photoshop can ensure that we’ll always look young.
Haha, thank you!
I want this to be true, and I suspect there are the same percentage to be found among musicians/painters and poets , loving what you do helps and makes however many years you have more satisfying , but a strong constitution and lucky genes probably the key!
Apparently poets die young and architects live the longest!
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24640685/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
6. Because they held a camera in their hands, they couldn't smoke as many cigarettes.
I think there might be something in this. One of the main reasons that people give for smoking is to do something with their hands.
Excellent post, Neil, and you’ve raised some interesting and valid points. I guess only time will tell for us to find out how true it is.
Thanks, Mark! Indeed, man doesn’t exist in actuarial tables but in the world.
I like this theory!
Interesting. My perception, with the recent deaths of Chris Killip and Tom Stoddart, was that they died too young, but you make very good points and I’m now convinced - photography is good for most of us.
One thing that I didn’t have time to include, but wanted to, was the role of chemicals in health of photographers. Not sure if that was the case with Killip but there are some worries about Edward Weston.
That was my theory. There seemed to be a recent pattern with British documentary photographers getting cancer in their 60s. But perhaps it was coincidence. I hope so.
Great post Neil, fascinating research and valid reasons - I must admit I've had that belief too so this research puts it all in context. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Lin!! Glad to hear you like it