Social media has made it possible for us to view hundreds of casual images (see my previous post What We Photograph). These posts try to communicate with images, images, and more images... yet many have little in them that has any real and lasting communication. This is not to say the casual image is meaningless... far from it. They can capture a world from the individual point of view, a view that only a limited few would see until the advent of social media. I firmly believe that a hundred years from now, people will see our society based primarily on the social media images we choose to post today. Yet, for the most part, these images do not capture the moment as intended, or at best, present it in such a way that the meaning is lost in translation. The emotion that was felt at the time doesn’t translate well, the images lose their meaning when posted for the world to see on a tiny screen, and in essence, they were made for the person taking them at the time.
Many posit this loss in translation is due to bad technique, so we get blogs and websites posting articles like "Two camera settings that will make your images pop!" or "The one piece of equipment landscape photographers can't do without". These aren't exact quotes, but you get the idea. I read these posts and, at least for me, they seem gimmicky, more interested in equipment that will save your images from... well... bad technique. Don't get me wrong, there are always things to learn to make you a better photographer, and these posts have some great information. And although technique does matter, by boiling our thinking down to the search for the perfect setting on a camera or having that special piece of equipment we just "can't do without", we forget the entire point of why we are creating images in the first place. You don't hear a painter passionately describe the exact brush they used or the brand of paint they bought; it would astound me to hear of someone who obsessed over the kind of chisel Michelangelo used to create the Statue of David, and then ignore the masterpiece itself. Although technique makes me wonder in amazement at the expertise of the artist, it isn't the equipment or technique that really matters — it's about the journey the artist took that created such a miracle of vision; the search for those little details that make a subject something more than what it first appears to be. It's about taking the time to look carefully at the world, thinking about what we see, and then finding a way to capture that in a way a viewer can experience it too. Let's change gears for a second and think about driving a car. If I want to drive to the store to buy groceries, I need to be able to actually drive! But, if I can't, I can get a ride, use the bus, or even walk — not always the best solutions, but doable. In the end, the purpose is to get the groceries, not to do the driving. Getting back to photography, it's best to understand your camera settings, see how filters change the look of a scene, use a tripod when necessary. But, if I can't, I can use program settings on the camera, try to steady myself when I take a shot, or fix images on the computer — not always the best solutions, but doable. The techniques may create an advantage, but are not the purpose of photography. Creating images is. When I am out with my camera, I try my best to keep seeing instead of just looking. Looking is accepting something as there -- it exists and so you move on. But to see, that is so much greater. To see is to realize something caught your eye, something stood out and it mattered, even if that was only for an instant. As photographers, we try to understand why this something is meaningful, and once we do, we find a way to create an image that communicates this meaning. So ultimately, communication is the transference of meaning, and that is exactly the purpose of creating photographic images. Now, you may love my work or you may hate it. All I have to say is... GREAT! Something in the images drove you crazy or made you weep (possibly both!). It communicated in some way, and that's a good thing. I do not fear loathing, I fear indifference. When I communicate through my photography, I want to be heard. It is perfectly fine if you don’t like what you hear... it provides an opportunity for discussion and maybe even enlightenment for both of us. Case in point — I have been reading a lot about new improvements in camera phone technology and discussed this with various friends of mine. This got me interested in what the camera in my phone could do, so I started exploring. There is a sense of letting go of the camera and just looking at the world when you use this little technological marvel. You let go of all that ego about having to make things perfect the first time, then start actually seeing the world in a different way. I think this adventure will bring more clarity to my other camera work as well, and maybe I might even really start seeing the world instead of just looking at it! What a great world it would be if we didn’t shy away from the things we don’t like and instead made a point of discussing them in a human and engaging way. A lot of the worlds problems would be solved if we did. So keep on communicating, creating images, and being heard.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
fotostufphotographic illuminations Archives
December 2018
Categories
All
|