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
With Age Comes WisdomIf we are lucky, we learn from not just our mistakes, but also from our early attempts. This week I'm comparing early images from a trip to the Sun Yat Sen Chinese garden in Vancouver, BC in 2003 to images shot 14 years later in the Lan Su Chinese garden in Portland, OR. In 2003, a 6 megapixel Fujifilm s602 camera; in 2017, a 16 megapixel Panasonic G85. Planting seeds always preceeds harvesting fruit. What I learned:I think I was on to something interesting with the above curved passageway photographed in 2003. I love the light as the sun was setting. However, I think the above is somewhat simplistic compared to the version at left from 2017. I prefer the complexity and the better shadow detail. In the above, my eye is led into the image by essentially the empty walkway. The stone fence in the left image is much more engaging. |
