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:Green on parade! What I don't like in the picture:In baseball, hitters often have "a hole in their swing." This means there is one location a pitcher can throw and the hitter just can't seem to hit the ball in that location. Photographers can have "a hole in their vision." Mine is the lower right corner. What I learned:Click on the image above so you can see the larger version. See the problem? There is a leaf sticking in from that lower right corner that is out of focus. That is my "hole in my vision." I have tons of these mistakes in my Lightroom catalog. Fortunately, I've seen this so many times in my images that I know about it. I'll regularly look for these unwanted intruders when I chimp. When I spot them, I can quickly recompose and eliminate the problem. As can be seen in the better example at left. Do you have a hole in your vision? |
