LensWork - Photography and the Creative Process

Not all photographers use the medium for artistic expression. What does it mean to be a fine art photographer? What is a "personally expressive" photograph? This is the first of a two-part podcast attempting to clarify this thorny issue.

I had a very interesting question from a photographer whose work was not selected to be included in our latest book, Our Magnificent Planet 2021. He asked if there was anything in common in the 300 images that were selected for publication? In fact, I think there is.

I know a number of photographers who maintain a philosophy that they won't look at other photographers' work because they don't want to be influenced by it. What's wrong with being influenced? Didn't Isaac Newton put this issue to rest when he suggested that business about standing on the shoulders of giants?

As fine art photographers, we are meticulous in everything that contributes to our artwork. That's good. There are, however, things that are simply beyond our control.

When we look at artwork that's outside our normal likes and predispositions, it's easy to dismiss it and move on. I've found it very useful strategy to ignore my knee-jerk predispositions and to give the artist the benefit of the doubt and try to understand what they are attempting. Sometimes, with time, I learned to appreciate the artist's accomplishment in unexpected ways.

Every time we click the shutter, we have, more or less, some idea about what we would like the photograph to be. But of course in today's world of incredibly capable post-processing, that same click of the shutter could probably become so many different images. And interesting exercise might be to force yourself to process a favorite image into 10 variations just to be sure you aren't developing habitual grooves in your decision making.

Looking back on my 50 years of photography, one of the most interesting group projects I've participated in are a number of print swaps. I still think this is a valid idea, particularly in the first half of one's photographic life. In particular, it's a great way to break out of our self-imposed ruts.

Revisiting my thoughts on what today is the "original" in our photography.

A friend of mine just sold a signed Ansel Adams print for $3,500. But there's a story behind it that's even more interesting because of what it tells us about the art market.

In the ongoing questions about OIS (optical image stabilization) and IBIS (in body image stabilization) on a tripod, I've discovered that it makes a big difference whether or not I have the center column extended.

Photography and the Creative Process has been the tag line for LensWork since its inception in 1993. But what is "the creative process"?

I remember the first time I read a Charles Dickens novel. I could only do so with a dictionary at my side and found I needed to look up a new word or two on every single page. I was not only reading the plot but learning a vocabulary about description and character development. The same can be said about looking at photographs. We need to learn a visual vocabulary and that learning never stops.

Because we are a photographers, it's easy to look at an image and wonder how it was made. The much more interesting questions are why, the emotional and metaphorical content, and what are the connections?

Feedback as to whether or not you like or don't like an image is not very useful for the photographer. There are some things that can be useful, for example, what you see in a photograph, fellow travelers, and connecting the dots.

Yesterday I was talking about the lack of comments about the prints on the wall in my trailer. It occurred to me that people may not know what to say. Here are a few conversation starters that might be useful.