I love photography and videography. Any one that knows my family and I knows that it runs in our blood. Both of my sisters are semi-professional and professional photographers and my Father has always been really good behind the lens. For whatever reason this skill was not passed on to me. Being a designer I can sometimes see the beauty and potential in something that others might not see. For whatever reason I lose that ability when trying to take pictures. I’ve taken maybe one good picture in my life and the rest are just lackluster attempts to be artsy. I understand that not every picture a photographer takes is a work of art. I’ve seen my sisters edit there pictures and there are always a few that are thrown out the window. The key word in that last sentence is “few”. When I look at pictures I’ve taken I always end up scrapping almost all of the pictures. I realized after reflecting on this dilemma that what I need to do is train my eye to see the picture before I take it. I have an eye for proportions. It was polished by my professors in college, teaching me the rules when dressing a body, or a stage, or a lighting plot. But it was something that I was doing naturally. I was on the right track all they had to do was steer me back on track when I went of the rails like a runaway train of creativity. I had a mentor and professor that I worked with in the Ohio State Dance Department that used to listen to my ideas calmly and respectfully and give me one of two answers:
“I think you should revisit this in a couple of hours and see if you still like it”
Or
“Interesting”
The later of the two was infuriating. I used to say to her all the time ” I hate when you say that..I don’t know if its a good interesting or a bad interesting”. She would laugh and say it was a good interesting, but i never got out of the habit of doubting that word. I’m sure i drove her crazy with my insecurity’s but she never showed it. I was lucky to have two very good Costume professors that gave me opportunity that not everyone was given.
So the point of all of this is to find out how to see things differently, to see naturally what other photographers do without realizing it and to have someone as smart as my professor to keep me on track without influencing.
That shouldn’t be that hard right?
I’ve included some shots that my sisters have taken….Hey Dale and Carrie! Don’t sue me….
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