429 Quotes About Observation

I observed on most collected stones the imprints of innumerable plant fragments which were so different from those which are growing in the Lyonnais, in the nearby provinces, and even in the rest of France, that I felt like collecting plants in a new world... The number of these leaves, the way they separated easily, and the great variety of plants whose imprints I saw, appeared to me just as many volumes of botany representing in the same quarry the oldest library of the world.

He seemed like the type that kept people at arm's length, maybe out of arrogance or maybe from personal choice- either way, I wanted to know him so that those eyes were narrowed and focused solely on me.

Observation is a Silent Practical Classroom. Analysis of similar outcomes helps you in choosing the right path.

Most people can perceive the obvious outside appearance of things, but to go deeper, piercing the surface of appearance, is the real skill of a sage.

If you really observe “suburbia,” it was created from fear or for lack of a better word, the conservative mindset terrified of anything original. Especially terrified of the individual. Thousands of years ago they called it Babylon.

The desire to catch, as Bonnard hoped, the PASSING MOMENT is antithetical to being in the moment. The photographer is an observer to others’ moments. The Picture People have dedicated themselves to this paradox, and consign themselves on either side of the equation.

Beauty is everywhere you look, but you have to look.

Generally, there is a lot of truth value in stepping back, observing, then logically generalizing the extremes of what you see.

The house is seventies modern with sliding windows, gas-effect and a giant TV in the living room. There are almost no books. I'm not making any judgement. It's just the sort of thing I can't help but notice.