I had already been at a photographic
crossroad for awhile, then the Pandemic hit.
That was the big Kabosh for someone who likes to walk City streets with a camera. I still walk my neighborhood and try to exercise my eye/shutter coordination with my phone, but it ain’t the same.
I have a good sense of where my photographic sensibilities come from, but often don’t see a place for them in the current landscape. Last year, I had two critiques at SF Camerawork, and while I was pleased with the response, I was definitely of the minority- artists formally known as “Street”.
I also have a current show, which I offered to share with a colleague. His work is all trees and sunsets, baked in Instagram filters, and he is selling well. Mine, not so much. Maybe nobody likes it, I like to think it is outside of the popular norm-it’s not pretty.
In the Art community, a great deal of current work seems to center on the “Project”, a collection of images that revolve around a theme or concept. An offshoot of this (or maybe the result of it) is the self published photobooks, an effective method of wrapping up a project.
To my way of shooting, themed projects can be effective in two ways. Intentional shooting helps provide focus when “the hunt is on”. I was just discussing motivation and inertia with another photographer, and we agreed that going out with a purpose helps considerably. When I was enrolled in photography classes, the assignments kept me on my toes, and I actually finished both the 123 Project and built my little web site because of those assignments.
But I am seldom that organized, and seldom have a goal in mind. Instead, my usual method is to just start walking around and see what comes up. I read a Daido Moriyama quote- “When I go out into the city I have no plan. I walk down one street, and when I am drawn to turn the corner into another, I do. Really I am like a dog. I decide where to go by the smell of things, and when I am tired, I stop.” Maybe it is ironic or maybe it was intentional that Stray Dog is probably his most iconic photograph, but that is what we all are doing-We are just out there looking for scraps to feed our appetites.
Sometimes, before Shelter in Place, I would take the train to San Francisco, come up out of the station, press both crossing signal WALK buttons at the same time, and then go in the direction of the first to light up.
I read another quote, attributed to Larry Sultan that said “The more you try to control the world, the less magic you get.
When I walk City streets, I like to shoot architectural elements and signs. Unless I use them as filler on my <Instagram page>, most of these images will never be seen by anyone, but the act of hunting sharpens the eye, and both shooting and light editing (even for web/Instagram use) exercises the right muscles.
I like to think that sometimes I even get an image that is photographically interesting.
for awhile, then the Pandemic hit. That was the big Kabosh for someone who likes to walk City streets with a camera. I still walk my neighborhood and try to exercise my eye/shutter coordination with my phone, but it ain’t the same.
I have a good sense of where my photographic sensibilities come from, but often don’t see a place for them in the current landscape. Last year, I had two critiques at SF Camerawork, and while I was pleased with the response, I was definitely of the minority- artists formally known as “Street”.
In the Art community, a great deal of current work seems to center on the “Project”, a collection of images that revolve around a theme or concept. An offshoot of this (or maybe the result of it) is the self published photobooks, an effective method of wrapping up a project.
To my way of shooting, themed projects can be effective in two ways. Intentional shooting helps provide focus when “the hunt is on”. I was just discussing motivation and inertia with another photographer, and we agreed that going out with a purpose helps considerably. When I was enrolled in photography classes, the assignments kept me on my toes, and I actually finished both the <123 Project> and built my little web site because of those assignments.
But I am seldom that organized, and seldom have a goal in mind. Instead, my usual method is to just start walking around and see what comes up. I read a quote, attributed to Daido Moriyama- ““When I go out into the city I have no plan. I walk down one street, and when I am drawn to turn the corner into another, I do. Really I am like a dog. I decide where to go by the smell of things, and when I am tired, I stop.” Maybe it is ironic (or maybe it was meant to be) that <Stray Dog> is probably his most iconic photograph, but that is what we are doing-We are just out there looking for scraps to feed our appetites.
Sometimes, before Shelter in Place, I would take the train to San Francisco, come up out of the station, press both crossing signal WALK buttons at the same time, and then go in the direction of the first to light up.
I read another quote, attributed to Larry Sultan that said “The more you try to control the world, the less magic you get.
When I walk City streets, I like to shoot architectural elements and signs. Unless I use them as filler on my Instagram page, most of these images will never be seen by anyone, but the act of hunting sharpens the eye, and both shooting and light editing (even for web/Instagram use) exercises the right muscles.
I like to think that sometimes I even get an image that is photographically interesting.
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