As I read this I thought about all those people who share pictures here but tell us how awful they are, how little thought was put into the picture, how they are sorry for posting such a bad picture and promise to do better. To all of you I say, none of us are perfect and we cannot, no must not, be perfect. It's an unrealistic expectation to live up to. None of us can. Let those photos be as much a part of your project as the perfect photos you aspire to create. Be proud to have posted something, if that is your only goal at the moment. We do not look at your photos and say "hey, that's not perfect." So, please do not apologize and promise to do better. Enjoy the moments that are given to you no matter how imperfect they are. :-)
thank you so much! I really needed this , I forgot after looking at so many pictures on here that I thought were amazing that I started this project for fun. I didn't even aspire to be a better photographer when I signed up, figured it would be something I would try out and see if i liked. Sometimes I am amazed at the shots that i see on this website and then read and in the description people say " i don't like this shot" or " this really didn't turn out the way i thought". I got so caught up in that there were days I didn't even want to upload because I knew none of my pictures could ever be good enough as the ones I see and are in awe of. If they are not happy with their awesome picture that I would be TOTALLY proud of , why should I post mine? So again I thank you SO much for posting this, because it reminded me that I don't have to be perfect, I don't even have to be good ! I just have to have fun, and take pictures of stuff that means something to me!
@dmortega Thank you for this. I am guilty. I will try to stop :) It's just that a lot of the people here are AMAZING and sometimes I feel like I need to live up. I'm glad you told me it's OK :)
@loriromp --- It's not my blog. It belongs to a single dad. As far as a cure goes, maybe there isn't one because we are constantly striving for perfection but we are not happy when we cannot attain it. Happiness cannot be maintained because we cannot maintain perfection.
I so appreciate your blog and comments Dorrena! and you are so right! I think every photo has beauty and interest! I think it's our own ego when we think we need to post a better picture or maybe even a little pride! We could all enjoy ourselves and work more if we stayed true to who we really are and where we are in our journey in the picture world!
Thank you again for nudging us all to "BE REAL!" and BE HAPPY!
@feeandstevie I think you and I replied at the same time. I was trying to say exactly what you said. I'm so glad there are others out there who feel as I do!
I am trying not to write on non photography issues, but this is one that everyone needs to be reminded of. The best cure is simple.
Average = Normal and Expected. We need to tell ourselves that it is okay to be average and that anything more is not normal and not expected.
I am a much happier person because I embrace average. Others do not understand how I can be this way, but then they are too busy passing judgement on others who are not as perfect as them, and I choose to let them leave my life.
@dmortega That Avril Lavigne will age and lose her perfection is presently only a hypothesis! :P
But no, in all seriousness, yeah. Which is a pretty great sentence, taken on its own merit.
I think perhaps homeboy got a bit carried away with too broad a scope of "attaining perfection", and bordered onto "just wanting to fit in" instead, but general gist of it made sense :)
FWIW, I don't see anything wrong by trying to acheive some level of perfection. If we didn't we would not be motivated to improve our skills (photography-wise). However, we must also remember life is not perfect. We are only a spectator when it comes to capturing it and creating something that we can be proud of. Whether anyone one else feels the same is irrelevant because this project is personal for each of us but it is encouraging to see others appreciate what we have done. So, don't beat yourself up. Yes, post what means something to you because at the end of the day you are the only one to make sense of what you have done here.
@eyebrows --- You are funny. Thanks for lightening up the mood. ;-)
But just to show I'm not all pants and no trousers, or whatever the expression is: as An Enormous Nerd I do tend toward the logical side of things, and as with a fair proportion of logical nerdy types do strive for maximal tidyness of my nerdy things; you could call it perfection. Chasing it is definitely a trait of genus Technically Minded Individual, although obviously severity varies.
Within my world of nerdery there are many things which can be perfected; there's usually only one way to write a certain bit of code which will make it the fastest, so in this sense, it's possible to attain perfection. There are quite a large (an increasingly large, actually) number of problems however that literally cannot be "solved" to a perfect, optimal, literal "solution". You can never create a clutchless automatic car which gives the same control as a clutch-having one. You can never write a search engine able to know what you mean if you just type in "help". It goes on...
I find I have to be conscious of this at times, and remind myself that instead of "no, that's not possible" as an answer (with the conclusion "... to be solved perfectly" implicit but unsaid, as the assumption is always made on my part that a perfect solution is required) to someone's question about a particular problem's "solvability", one of "yeah we can get pretty close" is most times good enough. It's a bit of a drag, at times. Then you find yourself going too far in the other direction, and settling for half-assery more often than is ideal. Oh the humanity!
So, yeah. Perfection's a bitch, but I like her. Or something.
in photography as in all art the quest for perfection has destroyed many a masterpiece, where would van goghs sunflowers be if they were a perfect representation of a vase of sunflowers. There is beauty to be found in the imperfect as well as the perfect, the trick is understanding when to stop :)
I'm somewhat of a "perfectionist" so naturally that affects how I look at my photos. Thanks for the reminder that there are more important things, like enjoying the moment and not toiling over capturing it exactly as we hope.
"I will not be just a tourist in the world of images, just watching images passing by which I cannot live in and possess as permanent sources of joy and ecstasy."
Anais Nin
Your message is amazing and so touchfull. And you are absolutely right.
I saved your message to the computer, and im gonna read it, when I'm gonna be down, or out of inspiration.
THANK YOU!
Thank you for sharing this, it speaks on so many levels. There does seem to be a fine line between striving to your best ability & perfection. There are always boundaries to push, but at what expense?
In regards to the 365 project, I give it my all (most days) and hope for the best. And try to keep that in mind on those days that everything seems like crap, in the face of all these wonderful artists here.
yup, simple is best.
@gill --- I've said before, this project is as much about getting to know ourselves as it is on documenting or improving our photographs. Some people never learn that lesson so kudos to you for having discovered and accepted it before you finished your project. Maybe you will continue with a whole new perspective. :-)
I read the blog and although I don't completely agree on how he describes perfection I do agree with what this thread was originally written about. Sure we all like looking at others' photos and we like others looking at our photos but ultimately this project is your project. If you think your photo is awful then don't post it, if you haven't got enough time to put any thought into a photo then don't take one - there are no rules here to say that you HAVE to post a photo each day.
If you choose to post an awful or unthought out shot then do it but no need to apologise or promise better next time - it's your project not ours.
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.....guilty, that's me for sure, I am always too hard on myself..
......and amen to @loriromp , very very true!
Thank you again for nudging us all to "BE REAL!" and BE HAPPY!
1. Avril Lavigne exists
2. Avril Lavigne is perfect
3. .'. Perfection exists
QED
I am trying not to write on non photography issues, but this is one that everyone needs to be reminded of. The best cure is simple.
Average = Normal and Expected. We need to tell ourselves that it is okay to be average and that anything more is not normal and not expected.
I am a much happier person because I embrace average. Others do not understand how I can be this way, but then they are too busy passing judgement on others who are not as perfect as them, and I choose to let them leave my life.
But no, in all seriousness, yeah. Which is a pretty great sentence, taken on its own merit.
I think perhaps homeboy got a bit carried away with too broad a scope of "attaining perfection", and bordered onto "just wanting to fit in" instead, but general gist of it made sense :)
... yes.
@eyebrows --- You are funny. Thanks for lightening up the mood. ;-)
But just to show I'm not all pants and no trousers, or whatever the expression is: as An Enormous Nerd I do tend toward the logical side of things, and as with a fair proportion of logical nerdy types do strive for maximal tidyness of my nerdy things; you could call it perfection. Chasing it is definitely a trait of genus Technically Minded Individual, although obviously severity varies.
Within my world of nerdery there are many things which can be perfected; there's usually only one way to write a certain bit of code which will make it the fastest, so in this sense, it's possible to attain perfection. There are quite a large (an increasingly large, actually) number of problems however that literally cannot be "solved" to a perfect, optimal, literal "solution". You can never create a clutchless automatic car which gives the same control as a clutch-having one. You can never write a search engine able to know what you mean if you just type in "help". It goes on...
I find I have to be conscious of this at times, and remind myself that instead of "no, that's not possible" as an answer (with the conclusion "... to be solved perfectly" implicit but unsaid, as the assumption is always made on my part that a perfect solution is required) to someone's question about a particular problem's "solvability", one of "yeah we can get pretty close" is most times good enough. It's a bit of a drag, at times. Then you find yourself going too far in the other direction, and settling for half-assery more often than is ideal. Oh the humanity!
So, yeah. Perfection's a bitch, but I like her. Or something.
"I will not be just a tourist in the world of images, just watching images passing by which I cannot live in and possess as permanent sources of joy and ecstasy."
Anais Nin
I saved your message to the computer, and im gonna read it, when I'm gonna be down, or out of inspiration.
THANK YOU!
In regards to the 365 project, I give it my all (most days) and hope for the best. And try to keep that in mind on those days that everything seems like crap, in the face of all these wonderful artists here.
yup, simple is best.
If you choose to post an awful or unthought out shot then do it but no need to apologise or promise better next time - it's your project not ours.