This feeling : Am I just a Monkey with a camera ?

[Solarflare]

Have you ever had this feeling.

Nope. Thats how others see photographers. Thats not how I see myself, or other serious photographers.

Questionning your work, like crazy; I have all these question.

Thats a feeling I know. Theres always room for improvement. Think more, examine more, keep your mind open for strikes of inspiration, get faster and more efficient, pay more attention to the light, move around more, improve your technique with the camera itself, rather take one picture more than not enough, ... and all these aspects at the same time, too.

But thats also why I never ever feel like a 'monkey'. I know situations in which I feel like a monkey perfectly well - but thats when I get bored and my mind starts to wander off.

Quite on the contrary photography when done well is damn strenous and requires a lot of concentration. At least for me.

 

[pixmedic]

 

[Solarflare]

Nope. Thats how others see photographers. Thats not how I see myself, or other serious photographers.

Ooops. Just realized I indirectly called myself 'serious photographer', despite the fact I'm just some hack hobbyist. With "serious photographer" I simply meant people really striving for good pictures and interested in the craft. Not anything beyond that.

 

[Advanced Photo]

I approach photography like the Beatles did music, I don't like to do what I have done before, I try not to develop a 'style' that can be identified but rather a quality that is apparent.
In my opinion, if you have a distinct 'style' you have become stagnant.

 

[Overread]

I feel compelled to point out that as we don't have tails we are not monkeys but closer to apes - although in truth part of neither group and more in the homonid grouping but that gets complicated and political (scientifically political).



Otherwise what you're feeling are the same insecurities that are totally normal and natural and which people experience in everything. From being artists to doing science there are always those of us who worry about the quality or class of whatever of what we produce. As what we produce and spend our time on is important to us and those around us we often question it and its through constructive and measured self criticism that we can flourish.

The key is to harness these feelings into a productive method that produces desirable results; however we all reach plateaus where our learning curve slows down. We thus have to learn to not be overly critical nor overly demanding on results least we set ourselves up impossible tasks that we can't achieve and which then exist as a negative barrier.

So you're not alone most of us here have/will have/ are having the same feelings and self doubts. And most of us will work through them though there's no "on glove fits all" method that will be the solution for us all.