What's your bag?

[tempra]

Not a lowepro or anything, but there has been a lot of discussion about personal styles etc. around the forum, and I'd be interested to know what people like to shoot and why.

Personally - and this has been going on for a number of years - I like to shoot candid, capture the moment, and thats how you are.

My wife when discussing the latest domestic scandal that occurred with one of her friends often asks me why they do that, and I reply without fail 'thats how they are'

The majority of my photos reflect that philosophy - they may not be good, but hey who's scoring - but people (normally family members) see photos of themselves and after a comment or two, I tell them thats how you are - They seem happy with it.

People are different and interesting to me, as I've long been a people watcher I've done a couple of studio shoots, and some home portraits for people, and the best ones are when they are being themselves and forget about me.

I like the odd landscape, but I'm too lazy to get up at the crack of dawn to get a shot of mist rising from some valley somehwere at sunrise, and thats about it really.

Whats your bag? and why??

 

[Garbz]

Something unique and eye-catching. This could be anything from landscapes, cityscapes, stars, people, sport, macro (love my macro), anything. If I can make it look different I will.

A few days ago at a volleyball tournament a friend of mine nudged me and said snap a shot of that girl over there. She was really cute. But it would have been a plain stalkerish snapshot.

An hour later I took one while she was watching the game with the sun providing a lovely warm rim/back light around her head, and shortly after one of her friend who's team just won flying through the air in excitement.

So yeah I'll take photos of anything that makes me feel something but not take photos because of photos sake.

 

[oldnavy170]

My favorite is portraits. I just love capturing a feeling that people portray! I love the millions of expressions that come from people.

 

[avcabob]

I'm also a huge fan of candids. They feel a lot more real to me then portraits. I also like landscapes and cityscapes. Especially when using a wide angle or really fast or long exposure to capture it in a way not really possible to see with just the eye.

 

[crownlaurel]

For people, I like candid portraits. My favorite pictures of my kids are portraits I did of them pouting or looking lost or in deep thought. I have to remind myself to include more than one or two people in party shots. And I hate it when people see the camera and put on a smile. I like pictures that don't necessarily show the faces but tell a story.

I also love mirror pictures and I love reflections.

For most everything else, I am learning and haven't developed a style yet, but I love contrasts and things that are out of place or seem out of time...old vs new; dark vs light; shiny vs rusty; that kind of thing. If I can remember where it was, I saw the most amazing scene where there was a very old cemetary at a church and just up the hill was a contemporary playground. I wanted to get the memorial stones (almost a stone gazebo type thing) in focus with the playground slightly out of focus and then try to get the stone slightly out of focus and have the focused playground, but I haven't mastered that yet.

 

[sabbath999]

I shoot critters (you can see them by clicking on the link in my signature) and virtually nothing else.

 

[abraxas]

I like desert landscapes. The more remote and natural the better- wide-open and expansive.

The best times for me are from the golden hours before sunset when the light is at crazy angles and afterwards until the last minutes of ambient twilight when colors are fleeting and wild. Strong coffee at a campfire, writing, listening to scratchy AM radio at night. Although a playa or dry lake during a full moon will keep me shooting through the night.

Mornings are for wildlife. Observing it at least. I'll try to photograph it if I can. Mid-day is for botany, geology, sitting in the shade or napping. I like the comfort of solitude in nature.

 

[newrmdmike]

i'll photograph anything i think is worth showing someone.

 

[Chris of Arabia]

I guess mostly, I like landscape stuff and pulling out abstracted details from things. I also seem to have an affinity for abandoned buildings, especially if they have bits of old rusted machinery left inside them. Much as I love good people shots, it's not something I'm comfortable doing - I tend to feel far too self conscious and am not really at one enough with the camera to be able to work through that.

 

[WDodd]

I guess mostly, I like landscape stuff and pulling out abstracted details from things. I also seem to have an affinity for abandoned buildings, especially if they have bits of old rusted machinery left inside them. Much as I love good people shots, it's not something I'm comfortable doing - I tend to feel far too self conscious and am not really at one enough with the camera to be able to work through that.

Ever get chased out of an old building by the cops or something?

I too like to shoot old run down stuff, fascinates me imagining what it used to be like. Landscapes, lighthouses, flowers, stuff like that. Occasionally my girlfriend will model for me.

 

[jstuedle]

I like mostly wildlife, my and others pets, and live bands. (now that's wild life) I feel I am in a rut lately, so I am branching out. Attempting to get back into portraits and stills. I want to shoot in areas that I've either not shot in a while, or never shot. I think I will shoot anything but weddings again, learned that lesson a long time ago.

 

[Proteus617]

Abandonments, almost exclusively.

 

[WDodd]

I like mostly wildlife, my and others pets, and live bands. (now that's wild life) I feel I am in a rut lately, so I am branching out. Attempting to get back into portraits and stills. I want to shoot in areas that I've either not shot in a while, or never shot. I think I will shoot anything but weddings again, learned that lesson a long time ago.

What was wrong with weddings? Bad experience I'm assuming.

 

[Nekoism]

I shoot architecture, I love walking around new buildings and just exploring and taking photos, just me and my camera.

I also shoot landscapes, but I stick to odd places like railroad yards, river beds... places where not many people go to.

 

[jstuedle]

What was wrong with weddings? Bad experience I'm assuming.

I was a young buck when I shot weddings. Maybe I was young enough to be intimidated, but I learned to hate them for the same reasons that many photographers I know today do. I found that the bride is the biggest b!?@h n the planet until she got what she wanted, then one of the mothers, usually hers takes over the title. This was typical, but not all the time, just often enough for me to really dislike shooting weddings. I hated them enough that when my wifes little brothers and sisters got married and asked for me to shoot them, I shot 5-6 rolls of 35 and gave it to them un-processed. That was my wedding gift to them. I have a close friend that is right now getting out of the business. I'm getting his Hassy rig for a song he hates it so much. Another trap a lot of photogs get into with weddings, if you are not careful they become very redundant. It's easy to take the same shots at the same time. Another issue can be the DJ. The two of you are competing for the time and attention of the wedding party at the reception. The DJ has the mouth and can easily win unless you are careful. I found that a well placed strobe ajacent to the DJ's ear canal will shut him up temporally. I got out and put the camera down for the better part of a decade. Now I shoot what I want and enjoy photography again. I still make a little money, but I love my craft again, it's not a chore to pick up the camera like it once was. Another thing I learned, for me at least. Don't make a job out of something you really love, it soon can be a hate/hate relationship.