Every Picture Is a Compromise
Lessons from the Also-rans
Most photography websites show the photographer's very best work. Wonderful. But that's not the full story of a creative life. If we want to learn, we'd better pay attention to the images that aren't "greatest hits" and see what lessons they have to offer. Every picture is a compromise — the sum of its parts, optical, technical, visual, emotional, and even cosmic – well, maybe not cosmic, but sometimes spiritual. Success on all fronts is rare. It's ok to learn from those that are not our best.
This is a series about my also-rans, some of which I've been able to improve at bit (i.e., "best effort"), none of which I would consider my best. With each there are lessons worth sharing, so I will.
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Original digital capture
What I saw that I liked:I love when there is a shaft of sunlight on an otherwise shadowed landscape. It almost composes itself. What I don't like in the picture:The color version above is dull and pretty lifeless. What I learned:Converting to grayscale gave me an opportunity to push tones to a more pleasing contrast. That emphasized the shaft of sunlight, but also brought out the cloud. I wasn't expecting to be able to pull out this much detail in the cloud, but it sure does work in the finished version at left. Also, note the importance of that little wisp of cloud at the upper left of the image. That adds a sense of compositional balance that helps a lot. |
