The "Why" phase

JonMikal · May 18, 2005

mountainlander said:
HA! I thought so. Notice I don't post on some of your shots.....now you know why! :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Hertz van Rental · May 19, 2005

They may be crappy to you, but to others they may be high Art - I've heard people say that 'Art is in the eye of the beholder'...

danalec99 · May 19, 2005

JonMikal said:
-but dont let the all the hoopla others receive diminish what you're doing. there are people that seem to stick close here, that happens everywhere...

-i cant imagine taking pictures specifically to please someone else unless you were commissioned to do so.

Jon, I think there has been a misunderstanding. How do I explain it?

I just had observed that lately my work was sub consciously being affected by the comments from here, friends and family. Not good; not bad. Its just that I feel that I should focus on what I want to do. I was merely dealing with that issue. I do not know if I am making myself clear enough!

.

Thanks everyone for the valuable input!

Digital Matt · May 19, 2005

Great thread, and lots of great ideas here. I'll just state my purpose, really to explain to myself I guess.

Like Arty said, do it because you enjoy it. I enjoy photography. I enjoy being out in nature, during a bad storm, or in freezing cold, or a cool autumn day. I love life, and photography puts me in touch with it. I enjoy walking down a city street, watching the pulse of the city, observing it. I enjoy thinking of the technical aspects of it. The framing, the composition, the depth of field. I enjoy the development, whether it be digital, or (soon to be) film. I also enjoy sharing it, and hearing different interpretations. I don't expect everyone to see what I see, or feel what I feel. I don't think photographs, or at least the ones I take, are meant to document a literal scene, but rather to show someone a possibility, and to provoke a thought.

My ultimate goal though (in life), is just to be happy.

Nikon Fan · May 19, 2005

Digital Matt said:
Great thread, and lots of great ideas here. I'll just state my purpose, really to explain to myself I guess.

Like Arty said, do it because you enjoy it. I enjoy photography. I enjoy being out in nature, during a bad storm, or in freezing cold, or a cool autumn day. I love life, and photography puts me in touch with it. I enjoy walking down a city street, watching the pulse of the city, observing it. I enjoy thinking of the technical aspects of it. The framing, the composition, the depth of field. I enjoy the development, whether it be digital, or (soon to be) film. I also enjoy sharing it, and hearing different interpretations. I don't expect everyone to see what I see, or feel what I feel. I don't think photographs, or at least the ones I take, are meant to document a literal scene, but rather to show someone a possibility, and to provoke a thought.

My ultimate goal though (in life), is just to be happy.

Very well said!!! There isn't anything I could add, the last line you wrote sums it all up for me as well

And yes great thread and insights everyone!

Hertz van Rental · May 20, 2005

Digital Matt said:
I don't expect everyone to see what I see, or feel what I feel. I don't think photographs, or at least the ones I take, are meant to document a literal scene, but rather to show someone a possibility, and to provoke a thought.

And here you have hit the REAL problems of Photography.
These are the areas that I am really interested in.
If Photography is a form of communication then - like writing - it should be possible for the viewer to see and feel what the photographer did (more or less). If it is not possible, then Photography is the modern Tower of Babel and we are all speaking in tongues and the activity becomes pointless.
Photography, by it's very nature, documents a literal scene - we can only photograph what is there. When we photograph a tree it is not a picture of just any tree but of THAT specific and unique tree. At the same time, we also see it as a metaphor for 'tree', representing ALL trees. It is this duality of purpose in a photograph that makes it so useful - and causes such problems.
More of all this later.

terri · May 20, 2005

Hertz, I agree that photography be a medium that not only is a form of comunnication, in and by itself - but I also like appreciating it as one that further compells it.

One of the most fascinating things to me is watching people who come into my booth at these art fairs I participate in. I like watching them flip through the bins, pulling out a piece and studying it. Or they glance over the framed stuff on the walls, then suddenly zero in on something and move closer. What are they thinking? What emotion has one of my images unwittingly evoked here? Why are they smiling/frowning/looking like they have suddenly remembered something? It wouldn't be in good form to pounce on all these people of course,

so I wait for the ones who actually come over to talk. Truly, I don't care if they buy anything or not, if they actually want to engage in a discussion of the process. Like Digital Matt was saying, for me it's about the love of the process. I put it out there for varied reasons, one of which is pragmatic (if I can sell enough to cover my costs I can do more) but the other has to do with this. The engagement, the exchanges.

What people see and how they react to something I've done is beyond my control. I want it to be positive, and when I feel it has been....I guess that's my best sense of validation.

Corry · May 20, 2005

Hertz van Rental said:
They may be crappy to you, but to others they may be high Art - I've heard people say that 'Art is in the eye of the beholder'...

JonMikal, Hertz made a fantastic point here. There are many levels of photographers on this board, and many newbies may have yet to get to a level in which their good shots are not nearly as good as what you call your 'crap shots'. I know if you would have been here when I first started, I probably wouldn't have noticed when you post something that wasn't quite up to speed with your norm.

Also, I do seem to remember saying once or twice that a certain shot of yours didn't impress me as much as usual, but I personally haven't seen you post anything I would call "crap".

And I had a pretty good feeling you were feeling that way about people 'blowing sugar' in your threads...also why I haven't been commenting as much.

JonMikal · May 20, 2005

core_17 said:
And I had a pretty good feeling you were feeling that way about people 'blowing sugar' in your threads...also why I haven't been commenting as much.

hold up, i like sugar! :wink: