Brooks Jensen Arts


Every Picture Is a Compromise

Lessons from the Also-rans

Most photography websites show the photographer's very best work. Wonderful. But that's not the full story of a creative life. If we want to learn, we'd better pay attention to the images that aren't "greatest hits" and see what lessons they have to offer. Every picture is a compromise — the sum of its parts, optical, technical, visual, emotional, and even cosmic – well, maybe not cosmic, but sometimes spiritual. Success on all fronts is rare. It's ok to learn from those that are not our best.

This is a series about my also-rans, some of which I've been able to improve at bit (i.e., "best effort"), none of which I would consider my best. With each there are lessons worth sharing, so I will.


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Original digital capture


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What I saw that I liked:

I love the Asiatic design of hanging limbs in a minimalist composition.

What I don't like in the picture:

Whatever that black blog is in the lower left is as awful a composition as I've snapped in years. Yuck.

What I learned:

Of course, the easy solution is to move just a bit, but that's only easy if you have the consciousness to know you need to. Here again, pay attention to the background — which I failed to do in the above.

2nd Chances: What I might try next

I might be able to recover some shadow detail from those leaves. Should I try? Or, is it better as a silhouette?