Every Picture Is a Compromise
Lessons from the Also-rans
Most photography websites show the photographer's very best work. Wonderful. But that's not the full story of a creative life. If we want to learn, we'd better pay attention to the images that aren't "greatest hits" and see what lessons they have to offer. Every picture is a compromise — the sum of its parts, optical, technical, visual, emotional, and even cosmic – well, maybe not cosmic, but sometimes spiritual. Success on all fronts is rare. It's ok to learn from those that are not our best.
This is a series about my also-rans, some of which I've been able to improve at bit (i.e., "best effort"), none of which I would consider my best. With each there are lessons worth sharing, so I will.
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Original digital capture
What I saw that I liked:I must like ropes and cords and things (see Oct 9th). No idea why, but I sure do photograph them a lot. I don't even like horror movies, so this is a mystery to me. What I don't like in the picture:Why did I think this was a horizontal image? What I learned:When I have to crop this much, something went horribly wrong. 2nd Chances: What I might try nextWhat's worse is that this isn't interesting and I have no idea how to make it better. Keep photographing these things whenever I find them? Or does that just repeat the same mistake over and over? I did one in China that I like a lot better and have used in an issue of Kokoro. Maybe that's the lesson here: Never give up. If it speaks to you, keep working on it until you figure it out.
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