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| Dead Ball. (click to enlarge) Fujifilm X-T4; 16-55mm f/2.8 lens @ 27mm; 1/75th sec. @ f/11; ISO 640 |
This is a continuation of some photographic thoughts that have been swirling around inside my cranium.
If you aren’t enjoying your photography you are probably not doing it or thinking about it correctly.
Was getting your first camera the reason you became a photographer? Not me. I received two cameras as birthday presents as a child. I made a few snapshots with each—until I used up that roll of film that came with each. But there was no spark. The spark came later as an 18 year old. More on that in a future post. …and yes, I still have those two cameras.
One of the reasons you bought your (name your camera brand here) was because you love how your camera reproduces colors. I hate to break the news but with today's modern editing software, you can pretty much make any camera's colors look like any others. A few years ago, using a Colorchecker Passport, I reproduced all of the film simulations in my Fujifilm camera for my Olympus camera. With the two cameras identically set on a sunny day, sitting side-by-side, I was able to photograph the Colorchecker using each film simulation, read the RGB values and densities of all of the color as well as black, gray and white patches, then dial in changes to the Olympus files to match the Fuji files—color for color, density for density. It was time consuming but not difficult. That said, if you like the way a certain brand of camera's colors look out of the box, buy it. Then you won't have to go through all of the trouble I did to make the color what you want.
I remember when we all joked about camera makers making a 24-200mm lens. Dream on! Not possible! It would have to be huge! If they did make it, the image quality would be mediocre at best. No one can make a lens like that. Same with cameras. We joked about 10 frames per second. Never happen. All those conversations were 'pie in the sky' wishful thinking. Wrong! One more. Image stabilization. Pure fantasy when I was starting out. There is no way they can engineer something like that. Well, we shouldn't be surprised about anything that involves electronics, mechanics and optics that we can imagine today appearing in the future.
I think, as photographers, we neglect making photographs of the ordinary. We tend to want to photograph the extraordinary, unusual, the exception, in beautiful light, etc. I think we make a mistake when we don’t photograph ordinary family moments with our loved ones or ordinary things that happen every day around us as well as ordinary objects. We tend to photograph birthdays, holiday gatherings, and the like, but neglect the everyday, spontaneous moments that, in the future, will be the ones that will become precious.
The same goes for what you see around you. Things such as people filling their cars with fuel. If you haven’t heard, the auto industry is going electric far faster than predicted. Putting gasoline in your vehicle in 30 years or so will be a thing of the past. It will be like you looking back at the cars from 50 years ago. How about other ordinary things such as pushing a shopping cart of groceries out of a store? Or neon sign lights and store windows and their displays. Food prices in the shelves. All of these common things will provide great interest in the future. One thing we know is 'change is constant' and we really shouldn't ignore the ordinary as it will be extraordinary in the future.
When I first spot something that I would like to photograph, I do two things. First, instead of immediately making the image I first spotted, I stop and look for a while to get a better feel for the scene. I will then make that image that caused me to stop. But I always end up finding additional compositions. Never fails. I see more than what initially grabbed my attention. In the end, it is usually the last image I make that becomes the one I like most, not the one I first saw. How about you? Do you make multiple images of a scene with different focal lengths, different positions and different perspectives? Which one, more often than not, becomes your 'keeper?'
Unless you have some specific needs that border on the extreme—like shooting in very low light, very high frame rates, stopping very fast movement, the quickest and most accurate focus lock on and tracking or very large enlargements—just about all digital cameras will get the job done. It’s only at the extremes do we need highly capable and specialized cameras.
It seems too many photographers only look horizontally around the landscape when trying to find a good subject to photograph. Not many look down and look up as well. Not surprisingly, there are lots of neat things that most everyone misses.
Be careful what photographs you post. You will be judged on your worst images. Others will think that when you post a really good photo, you got lucky. Good advice? Not so much in my book. Post images that you like and that satisfy you. Don’t worry about what others might say.
It seems to me that most everyone goes way overboard when editing their image files. I see photographers examine every little detail and make tiny, innocuous adjustments, changes, etc. to the most mundane aspects of an image. Things are edited when they don't need to be. I'm guilty of this as well. Why do we do this? I think because we can. Simple as that. I think the tools we are given allow us to go way beyond what is necessary so we can fuss over our images to make them as perfect in every way as we can. Most of the editing I see done is largely not necessary.
It seems every time I turn around there is another 50mm prime lens being introduced by either one of the ‘big boys’ of photography or one of the small, independent Chinese or Korean lens manufacturers. How many do we need?
It seems not many people today care much for black and white photography. It is still my first photographic love. It was seeing Ansel Adams’ landscape photographs up close and in person in a museum that made me fall in love which the simplicity, tonal and graphic expressiveness of the monochrome image. Do you care at all for black and white?
Recently, I read that YouTube rewards their channels for 'click-bait' headlines and content. I don't know if that is true, but if it is, it's shameful.
‘Good enough.’ Why do some say we shouldn’t be happy with our cameras or lenses if, to us, we feel they are ‘good enough?’ There is nothing wrong with ‘good enough.’ If a camera and/or lens fully satisfies you and produces the images you really like, then why fret about it, feel inadequate or spend more to buy the absolute best? That would be a waste of money, unless you are into bragging rights. ‘Good enough’ is perfect.
I used to photograph to show others how good (I thought) of a photographer I was. I used to try to measure up to the best photographers out there. I used make photographs so others would like my work. Gladly, many years ago, I let go of those kinds of thoughts and now photograph only to please myself. Unless you are creating images for someone else, I recommend you adopt the attitude to make picture only to please yourself. You’ll be a much happier photographer.
And...as I first mentioned above, if you aren't enjoying your photography you aren't doing something right.
Thanks for looking. Enjoy!
Dennis A. Mook
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