The Metaphysical Context Of Photography And Medium

This paper discusses a series of key problems in photography and photographic medium by taking the double viewpoint of photography history and philosophy history.First of all,based on the most common logic--"photography is about the image of existence",this paper sorts out and discusses the problem of "being" in the history of photography and the history of philosophy.On the basis of "being",image appears as "being in time",thus discovering the timeliness and nihility hidden behind the relationship between image and being.There has never been any image without medium.The discussion of medium is indispensable,while the metaphysical context of photography becoming clear.So far,there are two kinds of medium in the development process of photography,namely,chemical medium and digital medium.In the age of chemical medium,the birthplace of photography is darkroom.The relationship between darkroom and alchemy hides the spirit of romanticism and the metaphysical context of "thing" in the history of philosophy.After entering the era of digital medium,mathematics and rational science have become the core elements of image medium.The full appearance of digital screen makes the essence of image finally reduced to "virtual objects".The existence of virtual objects changes the logic of "photography is about image of existence".The dialectical movement of "being" and "nihility" becomes the key to promote image research.