cameras don't make pictures....

The current photography poll question at Shutterbugs.biz has to do with camera equipment obsession - real or imagined. Upgrading to a new camera every year seems a bit over the top to me and I wonder if the biggies stayed with the same gear once they found what worked for them. I suppose cameras were simpler then and system upgrades weren't released every other week. Ralph Gibson has used Leicas for 45 years; not sure how many models he's gone through over that time period though.

Bottom line, a new-fancy-top-of-the-line camera will not produce a great photo all by itself. And photographs produced with half-century old gear still hang in museums, drawing 'ooohs' and 'aaahs' from viewers of all ages.

WildAbout Percentage

Out of curiosity, I went through the first almost-four months of daily photos posted and counted how many I am really proud of..... eleven photos for 119 days. There are more than 119 photos posted, which makes the percentage even worse. :( Ouch! Not that I expect 100%, but I should be doing better than this. I need to examine my approach or my attitude or my discipline or something!! Sheesh!

the Queen... and the King

The Queen is coming for a visit this week and Annie L. has been chosen as the official photographer instead of me. I think I shall be offended! ;)

I would prefer to photograph Jonathan Rhys Meyers, currently playing King Henry VIII in "The Tudors" anyway.......

giving (and receiving) a photo critique

Found some helpful information on photo critiques doing a photo-critique

A few of the finer points:

• Remember that there’s no right or wrong in photography. Gross technical errors (vast exposure problems, for example) can be universally wrong, but artistic considerations are not universal.
• If you’re the photographer getting critique, don’t get defensive. If fact, just shut the hell up. Getting people to talk to you about your photos is a rare opportunity, so don’t waste it. Let people talk (even if you think they’re full of shit), it’s their opinion, and your target audience should be important to you. Let them rant, and if you really have to, defend yourself afterward, once it’s all finished. Although — honestly — if you feel you have to defend yourself, you might want to take a step back and consider why :-)

support your fellow artists

I had been feeling as though perhaps I hadn't been as supportive to my fellow photographers as I could be.... well, that's another post - honest critique vs false praise.... then I remembered that I have run a daily photo contest site for over four years, giving photographers a place to share their work and compete with others from all over the world. It has become such a part of my daily routine and yes, there are headaches too, but overall it has been a very positive experience.

when it's good

I seem to talk a lot about photographs that I don't like..... but when it's good, it makes me glad that I have ever pressed a shutter and gives me hope that I will one day produce something half as good. An image where simplicity and light have come together in such a way that you just stop and look and drink it in.

candid street shots

Yes, candid street shots have been around forever; everyone loves them. But I saw one today and a girl in the photo realized she was being photographed just at the moment the shutter was pressed. Her expression was one wishing she could disappear into thin air. Do we acknowledge at all that we are invading someone's privacy when we sneak a shot of them? By not giving them the opportunity to decline, are we assigning a rank of unimportance to them? I've never been very comfortable taking photos of people without their knowledge and permission and I am even less so now.

getting noticed

It occurred to me, when I saw the photos of the Virginia Tech shooter, that if he had posted some of his twistd self portraits on any of the photo hosting sites, he probably wouldn't have gotten much attention; perhaps a few "whoa dude!"'s or similar smart mouth remarks, but I doubt that anyone would have guessed what was going on in his sick mind. I have never like photos with guns, no matter how innocent they may seem..... now I will wonder if I am looking at a murderer.

don't love it because it's famous

A recent experiment involving a world famous violinist playing in a Washington DC subway station (incognito) has been getting lots of attention on the blog sites. Seems only about 3% of passers-by stopped to listen and/or drop some change in the tip box. I think it was a most honest response by the crowd. If you love what you are hearing/seeing, then stop and listen/look; don't buy tickets to a concert or museum just because someone else has deemed the performance/artwork worthy.

a project

I feel like I need to find a photo project... take a subject and do it for a week, at least... see what happens. Something simple, always available yet something that varies enough to make it interesting..... clouds? OK!

catching up

It has been quite a while since I've posted.... let's see:

• three of my photos were published in Camera Arts magazine
• Shutterbugs.biz continues to roll along
• started my 4th photo-a-day journal year
• sold some prints at a gallery
• invited to submit work to another gallery
  

not too bad!