Plates and films possess great latitude, it is true, but too short an exposure always has a tendency to cause a loss of atmosphere. - Arthur Hammond

The very word composition, defined as the "the act of composing; putting together; arranging in proper order," implies that the picture-maker must do something besides setting up his camera and letting it photograph just what happens before it.

...picture-making is almost entirely a matter of good taste, and that is largely instinctive when the taste has been trained and cultivated.

...I want to make it clear that the success of a picture, as a picture, does not depend upon topographical interest of the subject, but on the ability of the photographer to convey impressions of beauty or interest by his manner of treating it.