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
More First Days with
an Early Digital Camera
This week I'm again looking at five images from my very first days with a digital camera. Lesson #1 - don't ever throw away a digital capture because advancing technology will provide unanticipated possibilities. Lesson #2, you will continue to learn — lots — and that is just as it should be.
What I saw that I liked:
A very fun pioneer school house in North Dakota.
What I don't like in the picture:
The window is blasted into oblivion and the shadows are crunched into dead black.
What I learned:
It's amazing how much dynamic range is available in the digital world — even with this very early 2003 camera. The image at left is an HDR recovery. Blending two RAW captures to hint at some detail in the shadows and then a second exposure so I could see some evidence of the fabric in the curtains. This ability to blend two or more digital captures opened the door to not only HDR but also to focus stacking, multiple exposure layer blending, and more. Fantastic. |
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