"“When I’m ready to make a photograph, I think I quite obviously see in my mind’s eye something that is not literally there. I’m interested in something which is built up from within, rather than just extracted from without.” – Ansel Adams
One of the most common challenges I see developing photographers struggling with is how to take photographs that actually express the creative, sensory and emotional experiences that motivated them to take the photo in the first place. We often take photographs that don’t adequately communicate our intentions or fail to express what we felt when the photo was created. How often are we deeply moved by a scene or an event and yet our photographs share very little of what made the experience special? A common refrain of the developing photographer is, “my photographs just don’t show it the way it was.”"
Nice article. I have found myself recently looking closely at the figure ground relationship before I shoot. I am starting to see how important shadows are to light, and how important backgrounds are to subjects.
@smapp --- Me too. Since I began this project I've grown in understanding why something interests me. Putting that into a photo is harder. I like how it was stated we must first determine why we are drawn to an image before we can photograph it, whether it is the contrast in light, the colors, the mood, or whatever. That makes sense.
@dmortega Thank you for sharing this Dorrena. I just read it. It's beautiful, as are the photos. I'm also a painter and I find that the concepts apply to that as well. There's always the space between what you "see" and what you can make manifest. It's probably the struggle in all art. So well said here (by Sean Bagshaw), so thank you for directing us to his essay. I know I'll share it with others.
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One of the most common challenges I see developing photographers struggling with is how to take photographs that actually express the creative, sensory and emotional experiences that motivated them to take the photo in the first place. We often take photographs that don’t adequately communicate our intentions or fail to express what we felt when the photo was created. How often are we deeply moved by a scene or an event and yet our photographs share very little of what made the experience special? A common refrain of the developing photographer is, “my photographs just don’t show it the way it was.”"
Continued ... http://photocascadia.wordpress.com/2011/07/14/searching-for-what-is-not-literally-there-by-sean-bagshaw/