jjmaccrimmon (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
jjmaccrimmon) wrote2011-02-02 10:17 am
jjmaccrimmon) wrote2011-02-02 10:17 am
Entry tags:
Notes and Motes - Photo Philosophy
Well, I'm home again for a few days. I head back to SoCal on the 6th but for now I sorta get to rest. The trip back wasn't too bad though it was bitterly cold in Denver (sorry jetways aren't heated). I was delayed in the airport for 2 hours because the aircrew for my flight home was delayed enroute. The flight to Huntsville wasn't bad once we were airborne.
While I was out in the Los Angeles area, I had enough free time to go visit some of the sites that I adored photographing nature's beauty, visited with some dear old friends and even caught a show. Weather broke up my plans to revisit several abandoned sites, but I have the feeling that will be rescheduled to this next visit (time permitting).
While I'm on the subject of photography and my love (obsession) for it. As has been noted by some, it does mean quite a bit to me. My nature photos are in effect my form of daily thanks or worship to nature and it's diverse gifts of beauty. Sometimes the images are sublime and are meant for my own situation at the time. Other times I post them to offer cheer, hope or encouragement to others. I take a very similiar attitude and approach with abandoned place photography. I try to let the photos tell the story of the sites or objects I've found.
Model and show photography are a whole different animal. Performers and models go to incredible lengths to convey a mood, vibe, feeling and more in how they present themslves to the audience or the camera. The photographer(s) at the other end sometimes direct the flow of the 'performance' (as with models) or go with the flow (for shows). In both cases, the photography of a show is the reflection of personal skill, style, technique and equipment used. These are very individual aspects and they are the basis of our opinions towards others work.
Why mention this? I recently made an innocent compliment to a set of photos and accidently gave offense. My crime was 'I said they shoot a lot like me.' I felt like I hit a brick wall doing 70 when I recieved a message back politely telling me what a jerk I was for saying what I did. The comment I'd made upset the photographer who saw the comment and the subject of the shot. It gave them the impression that I was being egotistic in comparing their work to mine.
What was meant was different than what may have been understood in my comment. The photographer shot using flash at a show to better illuminate the subject at the expense of adding shadows. That is the style and school of photography that I learned and I use. There's a different school of photography that advocates shooting without flash (faster lens, higher ISO and different camera body). One emphasizes clarity while the other emphasizes color.
Either way, apologies have been made and accepted. I'm not upset with the feedback though I admit I hadn't expected to have a compliment taken that badly. I'll be much more careful in my words. I'm also not writing this to jab back. This is my own self-critique. When I write posts and comments they are from the first person and my own point of reference/experience. Performers and models who've worked with me know that I don't have an ego about my photography skills being better, slicker or more special. I'm about the last person to pound my chest about me. I'm just a shlep with a camera and lucky enough that Lady Fate has put me in the right places at the right time to try and capture a subject and reflect their beauty in my lens. I don't photograph people, places and things to reflect my ego; but instead to try and reflect the beauty of what I'm lucky enough to see or experience.
While I was out in the Los Angeles area, I had enough free time to go visit some of the sites that I adored photographing nature's beauty, visited with some dear old friends and even caught a show. Weather broke up my plans to revisit several abandoned sites, but I have the feeling that will be rescheduled to this next visit (time permitting).
While I'm on the subject of photography and my love (obsession) for it. As has been noted by some, it does mean quite a bit to me. My nature photos are in effect my form of daily thanks or worship to nature and it's diverse gifts of beauty. Sometimes the images are sublime and are meant for my own situation at the time. Other times I post them to offer cheer, hope or encouragement to others. I take a very similiar attitude and approach with abandoned place photography. I try to let the photos tell the story of the sites or objects I've found.
Model and show photography are a whole different animal. Performers and models go to incredible lengths to convey a mood, vibe, feeling and more in how they present themslves to the audience or the camera. The photographer(s) at the other end sometimes direct the flow of the 'performance' (as with models) or go with the flow (for shows). In both cases, the photography of a show is the reflection of personal skill, style, technique and equipment used. These are very individual aspects and they are the basis of our opinions towards others work.
Why mention this? I recently made an innocent compliment to a set of photos and accidently gave offense. My crime was 'I said they shoot a lot like me.' I felt like I hit a brick wall doing 70 when I recieved a message back politely telling me what a jerk I was for saying what I did. The comment I'd made upset the photographer who saw the comment and the subject of the shot. It gave them the impression that I was being egotistic in comparing their work to mine.
What was meant was different than what may have been understood in my comment. The photographer shot using flash at a show to better illuminate the subject at the expense of adding shadows. That is the style and school of photography that I learned and I use. There's a different school of photography that advocates shooting without flash (faster lens, higher ISO and different camera body). One emphasizes clarity while the other emphasizes color.
Either way, apologies have been made and accepted. I'm not upset with the feedback though I admit I hadn't expected to have a compliment taken that badly. I'll be much more careful in my words. I'm also not writing this to jab back. This is my own self-critique. When I write posts and comments they are from the first person and my own point of reference/experience. Performers and models who've worked with me know that I don't have an ego about my photography skills being better, slicker or more special. I'm about the last person to pound my chest about me. I'm just a shlep with a camera and lucky enough that Lady Fate has put me in the right places at the right time to try and capture a subject and reflect their beauty in my lens. I don't photograph people, places and things to reflect my ego; but instead to try and reflect the beauty of what I'm lucky enough to see or experience.
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