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
It's a B/W World Week
Most photographers these days will create some images in color and some in b/w. What are the reasons for choosing b/w in this colorful world? Here are five good reasons for a b/w image: emphasize shapes, emphasize tones, fix unattractive colors, alter a specific color to a b/w tone, all about the light.
What I saw that I liked:
The Grand Canyon is spectacular, but. . .
What I don't like in the picture:
A heavy haze from a nearby forest fire turned the colors to a muddy set of off-putting greens and yucky reds.
What I learned:
Striping out all the color by converting to b/w and then using the DeHaze control in Lightroom completely eliminates those ugly, faded colors. I almost didn't photograph that day because the haze was so bothersome. Then I remembered the new DeHaze slider and found it works great in b/w! |
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