Another book given to me as a Christmas present. Have worked my way through it over the past couple of days. Immediate impressions are that there is an advantage living or being able to travel to Scotland given the number of selections from that area and that there is a range of images some of which where it is difficult to see the element of 'landscape' (see the image of the wheelchair competitor). As ever in such selections there are those that you are immediately attracted to and think that really is good and those that you just think 'yeah alright' and occasionally the ones where you wonder what the judges saw that you are not seeing.
I went back over them trying to work out why I reacted as I did and whether there was any discernible pattern in my reactions. Perhaps not surprisingly I reacted positively to those that reflected my own views about what makes a great landscape picture and negatively where I was left wondering why it was in a landscape competition. For example I would not question the competence and vision of the image of an 'English Breakfast' in the foreground with our eye taken through the window towards an urban scene including a train but it left me cold (although feeling hungry!). My conclusion is that we are attracted to those images that confirm our view of the world in the same way that we choose the newspaper we read where we look for confirmation of our opinions and taste. Few of us like to step outside our comfort zone in most aspects of our lives and photography is no different.
These thoughts led me to thinking about what I gained from looking at the work of other photographers. If I am pre-disposed to choosing a particular style of photography that I enjoy and tend to concentrate on is there any real benefit from looking at different styles? Whilst it easy to suggest that one should approach all styles of photography with an open mind it is very rarely the case that this happens. As I proposed in an earlier blog photography is fashion led and styles move in and out of popularity. Those for whom photography is a way of making a living or are encouraged by their success in exhibitions and competitions know that they have to adjust to the latest dominant fashion in order to be successful. I once attended a talk by a well known landscape photographer who showed his work accumulated over a number of years. His early work was of landscapes of a quality that one could only aspire to. His later work was more 'creative' and less impressive and he told the audience that he had found it necessary to make the change because his work was no longer being accepted for exhibitions as landscapes were no longer fashionable. I was left wondering why this was the case. The problem was solved for me within a fortnight when a competition judge made the remark "not another one of the Tuscan landscape". From that and subsequent remarks heard at competitions and exhibition selections it became evident that the eye and mind become jaded and alights on something different even if of a inferior quality with a sigh of relief.
I conclude that whilst looking at the work of different artists and photographers may provide me with inspiration it is most likely to do so in an area with which I feel most comfortable. It may suggest a different venue or an area that I have not visited but in improving my work I am less than sure. If I want to be good or better at photographing mountains or urban landscapes the best way for me to do that is go and photograph them. Each time I should be critical of what has been achieved and work out at what I was less successful aiming to improve each time. A second opinion and some 'tricks of the trade' based on my work is one of the reasons I am following this Course. I will only be able to judge my success at the end when I have learnt sufficient to be awarded a degree.
No comments:
Post a Comment