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
Reasons to Crop an Image #9
Fix Horizon Lines
There are those who insist that cropping is a cheat for not composing accurately in the camera. I disagree. Never feel guilty about cropping if it makes the picture better. This week will offer examples.
What I saw that I liked:
The context of photographer and the landscape. Sometimes a step ladder that raises the camera a few feet makes all the difference in the world.
What I don't like in the picture:
This was a bit of a "grab-shot" and I didn't even look through the viewfinder to line up the horizon.
What I learned:
I generally don't use "Auto" tools in software. I prefer to do things manually so I get exactly what I want. In this example however, just as a test I click on the "Auto" button in the Crop panel and it did a perfect job. Is it cheating to use the "Auto" buttons? Maybe not. |
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