If it doesn’t excite you,
This thing that you see,
Why in the world,
Would it excite me?
-Jay Maisel
I came across this quote by photographer Jay Maisel yesterday and it really got me thinking about my thought process for picture taking and the impact it can have on other people.
I admit there are times when I go out with my camera and shoot a hundred pictures of random things only to get home and realize that maybe two are actually any good. Not because the exposure was off or the subject was blurry (although that happens sometimes too) but because it was simply an uninteresting picture. I was not engaged and interested in the subject.
This is why I try not to take too many pictures of flowers. I’m not a flower person. I think that unless you’re really into flowers and really know how to make them look interesting, they can be really boring photographs. Same with architecture. Unless you have some great gift at seeing lines and symmetry in a way that most don’t – a stairwell is a stairwell is a stairwell. I’m also not good with wildlife pictures. Some people can make a squirrel or an eagle look out of this world fantastic. You can tell when someone really “gets” wildlife. They show you a deep connection to the animal through their lens. Not everyone has that talent. I’m a people person. Sometimes I get other great stuff too but only if I’m really connected to the subject and see something interesting.
Take my balloon picture for example. It’s not a person but I can imagine a person holding them or a child lighting up at the sight of them or the hand that released them into the sky. I see something exciting and apparently a lot of other people do too. My mailbox picture had a similar impact. Yes, the DOF and lighting are kinda cool but I also think the selective perspective makes it an engaging shot. I think about the person who went there everyday for their mail, the significance of the number, the tiny details put there by the hands that made it. It’s interesting. And I think that’s the job of a photographer – to show people images that will move them, excite them, engage them.
This is my newest photography focus. I don’t want to take the same pictures that everyone else is taking. I want to find ways to CREATE an image that is interesting and moving instead of just pointing and shooting. I’m doing this first by studying exposure inside and out. Did you know that your camera has at least six settings to capture a correct exposure? What changes in those six settings is the DOF and motion blur. Understanding how to achieve those looks on purpose will really transform you as a photographer.
Yesterday I took some pictures on Kite Hill at Magnuson Park here in Seattle. I got some cool shots of kite fliers that I can’t wait to show you tomorrow. Now go shoot something exciting.
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