Quotes I Love: Shane Wuerthner

This quote from Shane Wuerthner hit home with me about art in general, my journey as a photographer, and about dance photography specifically.

We can know how to do a thing. We can get very, very good at doing it with precision and polish. It is something else altogether to let that thing emanate from your soul. That’s where artistry thrives—in that space where you feel like you can tell something about the artist by how they’ve executed their art.

When I started as a professional, I focused on families and events. They were fun and I enjoyed doing them. Looking back, I was doing them because of the choreography. If I’m honest, I stayed mainly on the technical side of my photography. I produced well-executed photography. I had satisfied clients. But the more I worked with dancers, listened to their stories, and learned more about the art form, my whole way of working and feeling about my art transformed.

I was at a photography convention a little while back, chatting with a photographer who was an icon in his own right. He said to me that it was clear that I cared about what I was creating. A few days later, I was sitting in a talk when the speaker asked, “When was the last time you photographed someone you genuinely cared about?” My answer was immediate. It was a couple of days earlier when my last dancer visited. And I was confident that the next person I genuinely cared about was coming to the studio the following week.

Shane’s story also reflects a key goal of the creative dance retreat—creating the space where we have time to work the technique and then breathe life into the movement, transforming a pose into a moment of dance that is authentically you.

I’m grateful Shane shared this moment publicly—it’s one of many thoughtful reflections he offers. You can find more of his insights on artistry and training on Instagram at @athletistry.