I’m here in Richmond, Virginia at the Four Points Sheraton for the Virginia Professional Photographers Association Annual Convention (VPPA). Thanks to Panasonic and the Lumix Mirrorless line of cameras for sponsoring me to be here. It looks to be a really great turnout. I’ll be speaking tonight (Friday) from 6-8PM and judging with a fine panel tomorrow. If you are in the area you might want to come on by to see my program called Photo-Synthesis on creating painterly artwork using your photographic images.
Lots of other great speakers for the next few days too.
Here’s my speaker badge. First time I’ve seen the new designation M.Artist. in my credentials. Way cool!
A conversation that often appears in forums or where artists or photographers gather is one of is photography art?
From Wikipedia – Fine art photography is photography created in accordance with the vision of the artist as photographer.
I absolutely believe it to be true. Look at different photographers through the generations and you’ll find there are several that stand out in different aspects of photography head and shoulders above the rest of the field.
Why? For some it is the pioneering of new techniques. For others it is the subject matter chosen. For still others it is an ability to see light where others find it not. I know early in my career I was hanging out with another photographer and watched him take a photo. I was not sure what he was seeing. Turns out it was a picture of the ground and some shadows created from multi-colored lights. It was captivating! And I never saw it…
Vision. Technique. Tools. All of these things make it possible to create something. Some can push the limits and make the ordinary extraordinary. That my friends is the art of photography. If you give the same camera, lens and subject to 10 different photographers you will receive 10 different photographs. Will all of them be art? No. Will any of them? Possibly. It depends on the skills of the maker with that particular subject, lighting skills.
“…it does seem to me that Capa has proved beyond all doubt that the camera need not be a cold mechanical device. Like the pen, it is as good as the man who uses it. It can be the extension of mind and heart…” – John Steinbeck.
Is my photography art? Some is… but not all.
That’s why I continue to pursue education, to attend classes and conventions, study images, study the classic painters, photographers and cinematographers, read books and magazines on photography, painting and color, experiment, practice and teach. (cause I learn a ton when I teach – I also love to see the lights go on in someone’s eyes as they begin to understand new concepts)
Let’s check in with other art genres and see what they have to say…
I have discovered photography. Now I can kill myself. I have nothing else to learn. – Pablo Picasso
I have always been very interested in photography. I have looked at far more photographs than I have paintings. Because their reality is stronger than reality itself. – Francis Bacon
What are your thoughts on photography as Fine Art?
Butterflies! Even the name kind of pushes you to run back to childhood. Especially when you walk in and the first thing that happens is a butterfly flutters around your head… and then lands on your nose! Really!
I decided to take the Lumix FZ 1000 because of the long reach, 4K video and fast glass to see what I could see…
This moth caught my eye. The warm tones and patterns with the cool colors toward the center really worked for me.
The long zoom allowed for some really nice bokeh.
A more traditional butterfly capture of a monarch on a flower.
I told you the butterfly came to visit up close and personal. Thanks to fellow visitor Phyllis Pardoll for capturing
the fleeting moment and sending me the quick snap before my visitor departed.
OK you know me and even though nature is beautiful in her own right I had to play to see what I could do to push the patterns of the moth to new places. Let me know what you think!
This is still a work in progress. Experimentation rules!
OK let’s take a look at the actual video that I pulled the stills from in the previous post. The Lumix FZ 1000 is quite impressive. This video is about 30 seconds short and worth a quick peek and probably tells the story a little better than words alone. Check it out.
Lumix FZ 1000 video captured in Nashville at the Imaging USA Convention
I was extremely fortunate in PPA Imaging Competition this past year.
It resulted in earning a Silver Photographer of the Year Award in the Photographic Open and a Diamond Photographer of the Year Award in the Artist category. For those unfamiliar with the awards they are for having all four of your images submitted attaining Merit status which for simplicity sake is defined as an ‘above-average’ image made by an ‘above-average’ photographer. The Silver designation comes from additionally having one of those images selected for inclusion into the PPA Loan Collection. The Diamond comes from all four of the images being accepted in the the Loan Collection of which there were only 24 this year. For more in-depth information on the International Photographic Competition and awards check here.
Diamond four for four Merits with four Loan Collection images. Silver four for four Merits with one Loan Collection image. Imaging Excellence Award for thirteen Loan Collection images. Three medals are for the Degrees the most recent being the Master Artist Degree.
The American Society of Photographers has an additional judging of their member’s Loan Collection images and
Awards a Gold, Silver and Bronze Medallion to the top three ASP member images.
Received lots of congratulations from fellow photographers that remind me of what a wonderful way we have to make a living, learning, sharing while being creative. I am truly thankful that this is the way I choose to make my living and live my life among so many wonderful people.
Yours in Creative Photography, Bob
PS – You think there are any possibilities for press releases from this good fortune? You betcha!
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