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
Processing to the Rescue!
The longer I strive to be an artist, the more I realize the essence of artmaking with a camera lies in processing. Capturing is only the first step. It's what happens to that capture in processing that makes it a personally expressive image
What I saw that I liked:
The image above was captured in 2004, the one at left in 2019.
What I don't like in the picture:
Sometimes it just takes a decade to work out what's in our vision. I didn't like the above literal image, but I loved the fact that there was potential in the seaweed that I recognized I could do something with.
What I learned:
When I saw the same kelp in 2019 in a setting sun, I loved the warm color rendition much more than the blue in the above. I intensified the warm in the image at left to give it a gold glow. I wish I could get a print with this same gold glow, but I've haven't succeeded at that yet. I'm hoping at some point I'll figure out how to process this to print as glowing as it is on-screen. |
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