by successfulbob | photography - art quote, photography education
Good morning.
I’m in Murfreesboro this AM watching a wonderful presentation with David Peters at the Tennessee Professional Photographers Association’s annual convention Photo Extreme 2015. What a splendid amount of information and wonderful thoughts and emotion are being shared. If you EVER get the opportunity to see David speak… DO IT!
This is one of the quotes from the program that resonated with me from the artistic standpoint.
“Light is the hero in a photograph.” David Peters
This is something I try to share with new, and old, photographers on a regular basis. I think these seven words explain it so well what makes for good, solid and artful photography. Best to you this Sunday.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
David Peters speaking at Photo Extreme
by successfulbob | imaging competition, photography - art quote, photography competition, photography education
Thanks to Karl Mullings, a photographer in Flagstaff, Arizona, for this reminder of a quote from one of his and my mentors, Donald Jack.
It came up in a forum post about how a photographer wouldn’t participate in Imaging Competition run by Professional Photographers of America. This almost 30 year photographer claims that their reward comes from hugs and referrals to other clients and there is no need to receive any other acclaim.
I now take you to the quote from Donald…
“If you have nothing to compare something to, then what you have in front of you is the very best that it can be.” ~Donald Jack
I applaud every photographer in their efforts to become better in whatever way they can. I suggest that using the PPA system of Competition accelerates that growth. When a photographer competes against themselves and push themselves through PPA’s competition system with peers they see an incredible leap in the depth and dimension of their imagery…. I’ve seen it time and time again.
Why does that matter? “Clients are happy with the photographs I supply them.”
Better photography. It translates to more and larger sales and being able to raise prices along with opportunities to create press releases and social marketing pieces that give more credence to someone looking to choose a photographer, not to mention staying front of mind in your community.
What are you waiting for? Give it a shot and see how fast your image making skills grow.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
by successfulbob | photography - art quote, photography education
Do you see yet?
Really see?
I believe we all go through stages when learning photography of learning to see as the camera sees. Most of us start out by making images that have some decent composition and maybe the occasional lucky lighting scenario and people tell us we should become professional. These are usually family and friends that don’t have a lot of visual and artistic background and that becomes the standard by which we judge ourselves.
Then we practice.
Study.
Learn.
Practice some more.
Learn more.
Realize that we aren’t really creating images that have depth and dimension and start our work in earnest in becoming the best professional photographers we can be. At least that’s the way it seems to be working for me. Artists through time have recognized that many people look, but not all people see…
“There are three classes of people: Those who see. Those who see when they are shown. Those who do not see.” – Leonardo Da Vinci
There is something about finally learning to see that is quite exciting. Perhaps I’m a slow learner or as I think, it takes time and study to really see. I’m not even sure I’m there yet… I’m still studying, art and other artists as well as photography and other photographers. Here are a couple of bonus quotes from other photographers.
“The camera doesn’t make a bit of difference. All of them can record what you are seeing. But, you have to SEE,” – Ernst Haas
What do I see? How do I use the camera to communicate the feeling I have about what I see? – Jim Graham
And, once we have learned to see, can we translate that into an image that others can see?
I’m still searching. How about you?
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
PS – here’s one of my favorite Ernst Haas photographs
Bullfight captured by Ernst Haas
by successfulbob | photography, photography - art quote, photography education
Ever have one of those days when things just aren’t going right?
NO matter how hard you try??
“Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer – and often the supreme disappointment.”
Ansel Adams
Ain’t it great to know you are in good company??
We all have ups and downs. The secret is to not let the downs rule the day. Next time you are feeling like it just isn’t coming out the way you thought it would be good to remember the above words of one of the greatest landscape photographers of all time…
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
http://www.biography.com/people/ansel-adams-9175697
by successfulbob | photography - art quote, photography education
I’m going to wax nostalgic on this Sunday’s Photo/Art Quote because of a quote from Alfred Stiegltiz who was an American photographer and modern art promoter who was instrumental over his fifty-year career in making photography an accepted art form.
Think about all the memories that you can relive through old photographs. By old I don’t mean ones that are a month or a year old. I mean the ones from your childhood or some time in your life when things were quite different than they are now. Good times. Or possibly bad times you made it through. Those memories are priceless. And a lot of people from the digital generation are going to miss out on those opportunities to relive the past in the future because we aren’t printing images and other than professional like ourselves people aren’t backing up that digital media often enough – or even at all!
“What is of greatest importance is to hold a moment.” Alfred Stieglitz
Now Stieglitz may not have been referring to holding the moments of memories. It could have been he was thinking of the moment the light was exactly in a certain form. Or an expression was just as needed to tell the story of a person in one photograph. I would like you think of this in saving moments of memories for people, including yourself, for an older age and future generations.
In many ways I believe this means printing images. At the very least it is a reminder to back up our files in multiple ways. And to remind everyone at every chance to remind them to make prints and back up their photo files.
Yours i Creative Photography, Bob
This is my sister Kathleen and myself in the early 80’s working for a bar called Jelly’s in the Caribbean on an Urban Cowboy night…
by successfulbob | photography - art quote, photography education
While I wouldn’t have used the word *’INFESTED’ I love the thought behind today’s Photo/Art Quote from Leo Steinberg.
I’m going to guess that being an art critic and historian old Leo was used to using some seriously negative pejoratives in his writing… But I digress.
Why does this quote resonate with me enough to share with you today?
“All art is infested by other art.” Leo Steinberg
I would like you to take this quote literally and be aware that your brain is like a computer and the old saying, ‘garbage-in=garbage-out’ is true. As is the opposite. Fill your mind with fabulous and wonderful imagery whether it be from standing in museums studying the Masters of photography, painting or sculpture, reading books and magazines with imagery you admire or looking at advertising photography. I have art books. I stand in front of paintings in museums and art galleries. I will fire up my I-Pad to view and study a single artist for 15 minutes before sleep so those images will be processed in the night.
As you study the artists you admire you will begin to see their influence coming out in your work. And, that’s a good thing! We all stand on the shoulders of those artists that came before us. Do so proudly and as you mix and match the artists styles you admire you will begin creating work that is uniquely your own. Allow other art to ‘INFEST’ your work.
Then others will eventually be standing upon your shoulders and the cycle continues.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
*Which is probably why you won’t find me quoted in lists of photography quotes!
