Hi John:
> How does one develop a sense of "seeing" a great photo as one observes the
> things around them. I think Doris and Matthew come close when they talk
> about evoking a mood or emotion that transmits what you are trying to say
to
> the viewer. But what if you have nothing to say. How is it that two people
> can look at a scene and one of them sees nothing worth saying anything
> about, and the other sees an emotion that they then convey to the viewer
> through a photograph. That is the "vision" that I'm talking about. How does
> one develop that vision? Or is it something that one is either born with or
> isn't, and it's not possible to "learn" to be a good photographer?
Perhaps only those subjects which pull your emotions will ever hold
possibility for a great shot. Perhaps only certain, elusive periods of time
will transpire in which you are sufficiently moved to create such shots. Once
you have the technical know how down, you will find that the left (technical)
side of your brain can work in auto pilot, letting the right (creative) side
of the brain feel your way through your shoot.
When I was growing up, my mother (an artist in her own right) told me that it
was going to take emotional connection with my subjects to create compelling
art. A good observation it turns out! At that time I was creating
technically well done photography with little artistic merit. The best work I
had done was a 650 shot essay on a Canadian fishing trip with friends. I was
thrilled out of my mind to go and it showed. It took many more years to
realize how deep that emotional connection has to be to a subject. In my
case, it didn't develop until personal hardships made me more empathic about
certain subjects. Nothing like surviving a hardship to help one find out what
is really important to oneself.
Look at your what makes you who you are. What would you say to a sentence:
"I'm unique because I ___." Or: "I don't think people care enough about ___."
YOUR best photographic subjects might just be covered by the answers you give.
Gary Reese
Las Vegas, NV
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