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
What I saw that I liked:I'm so excited about the fast shutter speeds on my digital camera. Up to 1/30,000 the of a sec using the electronic shutter. Wow! What I don't like in the picture:Obviously, I'm playing around with fast shutter speeds to freeze the motion in this mountain stream. Nice technique, but pretty awful images. What I learned:Technique in search of a subject is a formula for boring and trite photographs. Which I think I've proven here pretty successfully. Damn, I so wanted these to be interesting! 2nd Chances: What I might try nextI suspect I'm still on the entry edge of a learning curve here. I need to shoot more and see if I can discover what works. |
