“When I work, no moment stands out as of any greater importance than any other moment. With each frame there is hope, but at no time while I am photographing can I assume that I am succeeding. Sometimes I think I know. I have a sense of something germinating, of some threads. I am glowing. Of course, experience has taught me that what one sees in the darkroom often doesn’t match the expectation of the initial encounter. Still, it is amazing when out of a day’s work an image has resulted that can affect somebody.”
— Ray K. Metzker, quoted in Unknown Territory: Photographs of Ray K. Metzker
“Because daily living requires being positive, the tentativeness you have to maintain in working is formidable. For the sake of sanity we need certainty. To a great extent we fabricate and manipulate our lives to create new illusions of certainty. But working takes us into an area where we face uncertainty. Sometimes it’s very frightening. Either courage or obsession bring us through. The toughest thing is to know when to be decisive and controlling and when to roll with the work and let it take over. When do you force and when are you receptive?”
— Ray K. Metzker, quoted in Unknown Territory: Photographs of Ray K. Metzker