Photography vs. Photographic Art

One of the issues that I struggle with, and that John Szarkowski explores in his article The Photographer's Eye, is the art of photography. As a art form, photography is and has been an accessible medium. It is not limited to only those who have been trained at an art school or academy; it is not limited to only those who are successful in other mediums such as drawing and painting. Especially with the dawn of the Digital Age, any one and every one can pick up a camera and many times take a successful photo. As a future art educator, I tend to take a teacher's perspective, and with that I would consider this accessibility one of the great things about photography. It does not limit the art world to only those who are considered talented artists, but can bring in the outsider and give them an appreciation for a fine art. But, how do we then categorize and praise one photograph as a piece of art, and turn around to simply acknowledge another. That is where Cartier-Bresson's Decisive Moment comes into play: knowing the precise moment to press the shutter bottom, when the objects within the frame are in the perfect arrangement, the elements and principles of design art considered (balance, rhythm, line, etc.). While any one can take a photo, not every one considers design in doing so... which is what separates one from from another as being a piece of art. This is where having an artistic eye is conveyed through your print, because you have considered the frame, the objects within that frame, the vantage point, etc. So while photography is an accessible medium and just about any one can partake it in (which is one of the greatest things about it), there is still a separation between photography and photographic art.