Is photography 'Art'?

I no longer have the luxury of knowing and caring whether photography is art or not. For me the discussion is probably better framed as is photography 'fine art'? By this, for me, the question means can the medium of photography be used in such a way as to allow the deepest levels of human awareness conscious expression?

For others the question may be better framed with different questions and issues.

The question of whether or not photography can be employed by the deepest levels of human awareness for subconscious expression seems to me to be a trivial one.

Leaving behind all the debate about what is art and whether photography is art, it is clear that photography can avail itself of an extraordinary union with the human mind. The photographic expression of a subject can be exquisitely personal. To express oneself at the level of personal interpretation of a subject is not a goal shared by all photographers, nor does it need to be. Personal interpretation of a subject requires an impractical understanding of the techniques and materials of photography. Ansel Adams rightly called it the 'craft' of photography.