The Importance of Pictures in the Making of Memories

Science says photographs help to create and preserve memories.

Our brains see in pictures. Not text, not video, not colors. Pictures. So says science writer and memory expert Joshua Foer, who learned of a memory improvement technique and then employed that technique to win a memory competition. (Who knew there were such things?)

The technique involves equating a visual image with an important bit of information. This is not news to advertisers, who for generations have played on the general public’s proclivity for associating images with memories in order to sell their wares. But it’s a good reminder for the rest of us who may forget the simple power of a picture.

The gist, according to photography blogger Warren Toda, is that photography is as powerful and important as ever. “Photography is the number one way for a company to get attention,” he says, “to build trust and enhance corporate image. Photographs can help create and preserve memories and influence opinion.”

Read more at Warren Toda’s Lines of Sight blog: www.warrentoda.com/toronto-photographer/2013/corporate-photography-editorial-story-appeal