Jansos Photos: The Essence of Place

Much has been written about the essence of place and how we associate and identify with it. The remembrance of things past "where places are the protagonists and people only appear as shadows" (Petr Král - Pushkin Press) is a recurring theme in many photographs. There are even 'shot lists' that recommend the types of shots necessary to capture the 'essence of a place'. But what is it exactly that creates such a subjective and highly personal sense of place and how do you go about successfully capturing the soul or essence of a place and portraying that to others?

In Topophilia Tuan, a human geographer, refers to the 'affective bond between people and place' and the cultural and historical associations that help shape a sense of place. He sensibly argues that places are perceived and experienced subjectively through a combination of sensorimotor, tactile, visual and conceptual modes of experience. From this we would assume that each individual experiences a place differently yet the physicists Niels Bohr and Verner Heisenberg, on visiting Kronberg Castle in Denmark, noticed how their joint perception of the castle changed as soon as they associated it with the legend of Hamlet.

I am not sure exactly what it is that makes a place resonate but in my experience some do more than others, even in the absence of any known influence relating to the history or background of the place. At the right time, in the right place, in the right mood, specific places seem to have the ability to convey something about themselves.

These photos try and relay the mood and atmosphere of a place. I hope I have been partially successful in managing to capture something of the essence of place.