The photographer's way of seeing is special. Photographers see things that mere mortals never notice. The photographer is always on duty, seeing subjects that are waiting to be captured and rendered artistically. László Moholy-Nagy said seeing as a photographer meant “the training of the eye”. It is a learned skill. It reflects the photographer’s life experience, professional life, and the study of famous photographers.
There’s a danger that looking at others’ photographs for inspiration can lead to derivative images, a problem that is difficult to escape. Originality in any artistic pursuit implies the taking of risks by moving you away from popularly accepted styles. This leads to the idea of a kind of trademark, “personal style”, that is evident in the work of most accomplished photographers. The question is, just how far should you push this idea of originality in the quest for a truly distinctive style? One answer is–all the way!
New Zealand photographer Tony Bridge meditates on the risks and rewards of escaping the “mansion” of image makers who create the same style of image over and over.
… what do you do, when making an accurate likeness of what is before you is simply … not enough? When your equipment makes it so infernally easy? When you begin to realise that you are saying the same thing as everybody else? When you finally come to trust your own voice and heart and journey and, well, nothing else really matters? You really don’t give a shit, because you are deep into a conversation that only you seem to be aware of. You realise there isn’t a room in the mansion for you, that there is no one to talk to. As a result, you will have to talk to yourself. Or build your own mansion.
So, you set sail and eventually end up walking the gangplank you were always seeking.
Then it dawns on you, some way out, that in fact, the gangplank has no end, and that although you can’t see the end, it doesn’t really matter.
Over the years, I realised that a worthy goal is to develop a personal style, voice or expression. Exploring that path means that many of the conventional ideas and rules of “good” photography are only limitations. That thought inevitably leads to the realisation that all the “good” photos look the same.
Look the same? How can that be? Clearly, they are all different!
OK, so you have made a technically perfect photo of a mountain in great golden light with a wonderful foreground and fantastic composition, and you’re ecstatic about it. But really, it’s just another beautiful picture of a mountain. It’s not fundamentally different to thousands of other beautiful pictures of mountains. You might have enjoyed the experience of being out in nature, advanced your skills and felt a thrill of success, that’s important. It’s part of the reason we take photographs. But the fact is, most of the work was done by Mother Nature and a hi-tech camera. Sure, you turned up at the right time and composed the shot, but there is nothing original about that. Every day, more than 100 million people do a similar thing and post the results on Instagram. The competition is fierce. The only way to be noticed is by being different. Once one’s ego lets one accept that reality, a troubling malaise sets in, the only escape from which is to venture out alone, down Tony’s scary gangplank leading to … who knows where?
At that point, we’ve changed gears mentally and have become artists.
How to do that? Everyone will have a different answer - a unique answer. And that’s the point. For me, the answer is contained in the way I see and frame the subject matter, how I post-process it and how I present the image. Even that statement can be dismissed as prosaic, but it’s the thinking behind it, the process and the outcome that counts.
Tony Bridge has updated a famous Ansel Adams quote for the digital era. He says, “The capture is the score, and the post-production is the performance.”
If you would like to read Tony Bridge’s full article, it’s here.