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:

In color, this "Y" tree stands out pretty well against the vegetation in the background.

What I don't like in the picture:

But what if I want to convert this to a b/w?

What I learned:

The image at left is a quick conversion to b/w without any other fussing. The version below at left is the same digital file but playing with the color Color Mixer. The first version had the green colors going middle gray. The second version has the green colors going much darker. I like the second version better because it makes the orange leaves stand out more against the darker background.