Great advice for photographers

(Direct quotes from John Blakemore’s Black and White Photography Workshop 2005.)

“To me, the process of picture-making can be characterized in terms of the three R’s: relationship (the relationship that the photographer develops with the subject he or she photographs); recognition (the moment of exposure); and realization (the creation of the print).

… I have always mistrusted the deceptive ease of photography – the ‘magic box’, the brief moment of exposure, the lack of any necessary connection with that which is to be photographed beyond the hope that it might make a ‘good picture’.
My way of coping with this unease is to explore, to repeat, to work and to re-work. This process of exploration becomes, for me, the equivalent of the painter’s or writer’s ability to remake, change and develop the single canvas or sentence. An individual photograph thus becomes not an end in itself but a link in a chain of expanding visual possibilities. I find that this shift in emphasis gives me a new freedom. Each image is of value; it may suggest new possibilities and provide a signpost to what the next image might be.”

I can see I’m going to enjoy reading the rest of this book!

Dave

Pillars of palm

I’ve lots of photos to work on from the Joshua Tree trip. But here’s one that caught my eye today as I reviewed the trip’s images. (Taken at 49 Palms Oasis.) Definitely a case of visualizing the image before I took it. Should I crop out the upper right corner (the palm frond hanging down)?

Something from Joshua Tree

I’ve been spending the past few days photographing and hiking in Joshua Tree National Park. I’ve found that quite a few of my images have focussed on lines, forms and shadows. Here is one example.

Final for working image

Ok, here’s the last version for this exercise. This process emphasizes one thing I need to continue doing – paying more attention to the small details when I’m trying to prepare a final image. Thanks for all the feedback.

Image follow-up

Ok, here’s a modification to the previous image, following some of the suggestions. Better?

Does this work?

Here’s a working image. It was taken when the sun was shining through our textured bathroom window, and I focused on the window screen instead of the glass. Does this work? Is the upper left side of the image too bright, for instance? Should I crop the upper left more? Or is it just too busy in general?

Shifting focus

No, I’m not talking about a tilt-shift lens, or any other lens for that matter. I’m more interested in talking about my own personal focus and what I intend to do in my blog this year.

My plan is to move away from writing opinions on the state of the photographic industry or new technologies and focus on my own photography. I guess that means my blog will turn into more of a ‘traditional’ photoblog. But I’m not planning to post images on my blog for my edification or your appreciation. I plan (hope?) to post works-in-progress so that you, the viewer, can offer comment on likely improvements or directions that I can make. In some cases, this might even include a sequence of images that I’m hoping to turn into a portfolio, book, or something else.

So, get out your grease pencils! Oh, that’s right – they won’t work too well on your monitor.

At any rate, stay tuned.