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:Lovely shadow falling on this doorway in China. What I don't like in the picture:In my film days, the rule of thumb was exposure for the shadows and develop for the highlights. Things have changed. What I learned:Today's digital cameras have so much dynamic range that I rarely find I can't recover the shadows when I need to. Today I exposure for the highlights and use the incredible dynamic range to pull up the shadows. Sometimes that introduces noise, but that's easily enough dealt with to satisfactory levels. Keep in mind the shadows don't need to be fully exposed, just as long as there is enough detail to keep the shadows from being black. |
