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:Elsewhere, I've praised moments over things in photography. Here is a great example. What I don't like in the picture:The above is a fun composition, but a bit odd. What I learned:What is it? Without any context, we don't know its size, its purpose, its reason to exist. That's fine if we want to create a mysterious image. Note, however, how the image at left that captures a moment gives us context without providing all the answers. In some ways, it is more mysterious than the thing above. It's easy to think that a thing is a fact and a moment is an action. With this example, we can also see that thing can be a static question and a moment can raise even more questions. |
