I’m actually terrible at writing for this blog (that’s not the reason for the title). Often I have an idea for a blog, make a note of the title and that’s as far as it gets. Documenting stuff like the Photography & Video Show is easy, because it’s factual. Whereas with this kind of post (I’m slowly getting to the point…) who cares? (You don’t need to answer).
However, it occurred to me that 3 titles I had ‘lined’ up were all kind of intwined…
THE THRILL HAS GONE
CAN THE PHOTO LIVE UP TO THE MOMENT?
IT’S OKAY. BUT IT’S NOT GOING TO WIN ANY COMPETITIONS
So obviously I went for the more snappy B.B. King reference as a bit of click bait…
I’m at a bit of a cross roads with photography. I haven’t lost my mojo, the desire to shoot is there, but the realisation that hitting a standard I want to achieve isn’t going to come along everyday…. I’m editing less and less, because images that maybe I thought delivered at the time of the shutter, don’t seem to live up to it on screen. So can the photo ever live up to the moment? Of course it can remind you of the moment, but I don’t think it can beat being there and taking it all in. So I think this is why some images can feel flat after the fact, because it’s actually really hard to capture the emotion at the time.
Instead of the devil sitting on my shoulder, I have this little character whispering “it’s okay, but it’s not going to win any competitions.” And on the other shoulder, the other guy going “take it because you enjoy doing it.” Ultimately I’m taking less ‘happy snaps’ because I just don’t get around to editing them. Which is a shame, because not every image has to be amazing, but on the flip side it’s not a bad thing that I’m wanting to take better photographs. Of course, it’s not all about competitions, but I find social media a poor outlet for photography and there is only so many images you can have on the wall at home…
So in a nutshell I’m taking less and maybe being more considered with my photography. Which perhaps can only benefit my photography, but as someone who enjoys shooting it’s harder to have long periods between shoots. Maybe it is just the natural progression of a photographer? Let me know your thoughts…