> Bill Barber write:
> 5) Photography - oh, yes, that is what brings us together,
> isn't it? If you get the urge to say something nasty about
> someone or something, why don't you go to _http://hpsonline.org_
> (http://hpsonline.org) (which I posted this morning) and read
> my president's message for September, tell me why you do or
> don't like the images I made with my Agfa Clack, why you do
> or don't like what I wrote in the newsletter or maybe even come
> up with something that is on topic to post to this list.
http://www.hpsonline.org/members/barber/
I know you've posted this link before, but I bring it back
because I really like these Bill. I spent one (very lazy,
long-gin-and-tonic) afternoon taking photos of the telly
(mostly music-videos) with a long shutter speed, and, while
they don't approach the richness I get from yours, I did
enjoy some of the results.
(From the newsletter)
http://www.hpsonline.org/silverimage/2005/0509si/page02.html
> It is hard to be around a group of photographers and not hear
> conversations about the latest piece of gear, software or
> technique for capture and manipulation of your images....Don't
> get me wrong. I enjoy these conversations as much as the next
> person. I am somewhat amused by our fascination with the tools
> of our trade, our craft or our art depending on how one looks
> at their image creation activities
I've sort-of come to terms with my Gear-Headedness, which is,
"Get all the pleasure you can out of it, but try not to let it
get in the way of the photagraphy". The "sort-of" bit comes in
that this is more of a mantra than something I'm always
successful at (and, to be honest, it's not the only thing getting
in the way :-) ).
> My bottom line is, "am I producing images which are pleasing to
> me?" I guess the second part of that statement is, "Do others
> find my images pleasing?"...
> "It's the image, stupid."
I'd probably say "No" and "Maybe". As mentioned elsewhere, I'm scanning
in older negatives and finding that the OM1-50/1.4-Kodak B&W(C41)
combo is on a track that I'd like to have followed, but feel I've
got off with the Cannon. It's not that I think the Cannon or its
lenses are necessarily to blame, but, rather its like being
given a GPS and thinking you don't have to worry about tracks
anymore. It's not the fault of the GPS if you end up down
a dead-end ravine. Okay, probably a shoddy analogy. Regardless,
I'm finding that people, mostly family, like my images, but
I think it's because they look like good snapshots (better gear?),
sharp, composed, contrasty, noise-limited, et cetera. I think
I'm okay, on purely a leftbrain "technically", but nothing's
happening in the "AHA!" rightbrain mode. I'm uninspired and
uninspiring. There's a quote I have somewhere here....ahh,
here it is...
"I have come to the conclusion that my subjective account of my
motivation is largely mythical on almost all occasions. I don't
know why I do things" (J. B. S. Haldane)
I'm not sure of Haldane's intent in the above (perhaps because
I'm looking out from inside it), but I'd extend it to my own
motivations with "I don't what I'm doing". There's a need to
produce photos pleasing to others, but also a need to not
compromise on what's pleasing to me. Being, even after these
few years, in such an early developing stage of photographic
skill (that is, I don't think much of my results yet), I feel
I've the first's reliance on outside opinion of my photos on which
to base my own opinion (coupled with a mistrustful insecurity),
but I recognise that I might not be doing what people particularly
want to see. I see photos like Bill's above, or Wayne Harridge's
"rule"-breakers, and enjoy them, and can see that others can do
this, in my opinion, successfully (by which I mean with positive
feedback).
I think I need to get back on that track ("It's the image, stupid"),
but am still not sure how to do that. Blaming it on my equipment is
not going to help I suspect, though I'm willing to try the old combo
just to see what's different, and, if any, what's transferrable.
That's a long explanation of "No" and "Maybe", huh? Sorry - there's
a reason "Ramble On" is one of my favourite songs. :-D Just think
"Lazy", "Confused", "Self-contradictory", "Frustrated", "Insecure"
and "Not naturally talented in this field"
To move on...
Of your images, I find the first one:
http://www.hpsonline.org/silverimage/2005/0509si/0201.jpg
the most compositionally pleasing. I think I mentioned it with
one of Richard Lovison's photos, that the almost-symmetry is very
appealing to me. For it looks like the vignetting in the sky
even balances with the grass-clumps bottom left-and-right.
With the second
http://www.hpsonline.org/silverimage/2005/0509si/0202.jpg
although I am naturally drawn all the wat through to the tree
in the background, my eye keeps coming back to the softer
foreground (that's the impression I get - hard to see at this
size I realise). That softness is not unappealing - for me, it
is quite the opposite - and traps me around the yellow flowers
and, moreso, the grass-seed heads.
The third
http://www.hpsonline.org/silverimage/2005/0509si/0205.jpg
I enjoy. It is spectacular, and nicely composed. If I say
that I don't like it as much as the other two above, it's
only relative.
Of the above, I very much like the colour in them all. It seems
muted, almost "pre-aged", like a nice, ragged, old pair of jeans.
There's less "in-your-face" about them, which makes me spend
a while appreciating them further rather than letting
instant gratification cause me slip onto the next one.
Confusingly (to me), I'm at odds with Earl's comments, in
that the B&W's appeal less to me:
http://www.hpsonline.org/silverimage/2005/0509si/0203.jpg
http://www.hpsonline.org/silverimage/2005/0509si/0204.jpg
Again, this is a relative thing, and, I suspect, size is
definitely not doing these justice. To steal some of Earl's
words, I suspect "It's an image anyone should be proud to
display as a print", and a larger one at that.
I think I enjoy the last the most:
http://www.hpsonline.org/silverimage/2005/0509si/0206.jpg
Perhaps it perfectly captures the colour and composition
of the Clack (and film choice?), but to me it works very
well. I like toned (generally sepia) prints with "aged"
borders on them (or rough "film" borders). This to me
seems a coloured print that would gain an ageless quality
by way of an aged border (Does that make any sense? Buggrit,
it's the best I can do. :-) ).
You asked what we might be grateful for? Well, I'm *very*
grateful to be whining on this OM list about my crisis-of
-ability rather than having something *really* worth
complaining about. Things are good for me - very good -
even when I'm at my most self-flagellatingly depressed.
Bad things that happen to good people, like Katrina/New
Orleans, serve me (though most sadly) as a reminder of that.
Cheers,
Marc
Sydney, Oz
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