For example, in art, and in particular, in photography one does not need to brag about the cost of equipment or the number of hours spent mastering the craft. Instead, we can just let the pictures stand on their own. With images, this should be particularly easy to do, since their transcend languages, cultures, and even time, because people are genetically programmed to heavily depend on visual input for much of the incoming information and emotional content.
Rats!
Showing motion is a great way to add interest to any photo, and I particularly like when it is skillfully done in pet photography – dogs in mid-jump, for example. That is why our friends asked us to take care of a couple of pet rats when the owners were away, I thought it would be interesting to try capturing these little creatures in motion.
It turns out that rats move too much. They are extremely fast and unpredictable in their movements, and even if I could sometimes frame the photo, using a flash to stop the motion was not an option – it turns out that the rats are sensitive to all sorts of things.
Since motion was elusive, I resorted to trying to show the second best (or, arguably, the best) thing – emotion. In this case, the delight of my daughter at being able to play with the furry little creatures.
Lens for landscape photography: wide-angle or telephoto?
For me personally, a telephoto lens is easier to use for landscapes, because I like the perspective-compression effected also because I am used to picking out mini-compositions that I can crop out from the overall scenery by zooming in on them. I developed this skill because my first pro-level lens was Canon’s 70-200mm f/2.8L IS
Wide-angle lenses, in the right hands, can produce spectacular landscapes, but I find it more challenging to recognize a potentially striking photo. To practice this skill, I decided to put a 16-35mm f/2.8L
Taking notes
It is well-known that taking notes while talking to someone is signalling to that person that you are paying attention to the conversation. However, the manner in which the notes are taken is important. Typing on a computer may seem intimidating or create an impression of distance between the conversation partners. On the other hand, writing in a notebook generally perceived very positively.
I often take pictures as a form of note-taking, particularly in museums or during tours of laboratories, etc. Perhaps, in these settings, the impression that I leave during the process of taking notes is less important, but in the spirit of being aware of what one looks like from the outside, it is good to be at least conscious about it. The note-taking process has other important aspects that not only streamlines the workflow, but also makes notes themselves more useful.
Phil Libin, the former CEO of Evernote, points out that it is crucial to process and catalogue the notes immediately after they have been taken, and to do it in the same geographical context. He is referring to the ability of various note-taking apps, Evernote in particular, to geo- and context-tag the notes, but I think this concept of processing and cataloguing the information soon after it has been acquired also applies to photography in general.
Being a third-person shooter
Some computer games can be categorized as either a first-person or a third-person type. In a first-person game, the player sees the virtual world through the eyes of the character and is not aware of what the character him-/herself looks like. In a third-person game, the player looks at the environment over the character’s shoulder or from above, but in any case, the character is a part of the picture tat the player sees. In other words, when we play a third-person game, we are aware of what we look like in the virtual environment.
Phil Libin, the former CEO of Evernote, mentioned in an interview with Tim Ferriss that different people tend to go through life in either a first-person or a third-person mode. According to him, there are advantages and disadvantages to being aware of one’s own image. I think that even if self-awareness can be distracting from the point of view of pure experience, having the ability to invoke the third-person mode at will is a tremendously useful skill. Taking photography as an example, it is not only important for the photographer to know what image he/she projects to the client, the models, etc., but it is also crucial to make the models aware of what they look like through the lens, so that they can adjust the pose, the makeup, etc.
I wonder what Velázquez, who included himself in the already busy composition of “Las Meninas
Being a “third-person shooter” is different from being a slave to the opinion of others, against which there are many warnings, including Hugh MacLeod’s “Ignore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity
California dreaming
Too much of a good stuff could be not so good, if it is monotonous. We have been having a stretch of incredible warm summer weather in the Pacific North-West, and I overheard one local man saying to another: “I hope it won’t turn into California.”
Granted, these people were both runners, and training outdoors is much more comfortable in cooler weather. Still, I think that this attitude shows that it is important to have variety in whatever we experience, even if things seem to be pretty good at the moment. At the very least, variation would make us appreciate the “ups” more and help cope with future “downs” by putting them into perspective.
Museums
In many museums around the world photography is allowed, provided that no flash or tripod is used. I suspect that both restrictions are made for the convenience of other visitors rather than to prevent photographers from taking high-quality photos. I find this totally acceptable, as it would be extremely tedious to catalogue the museum’s collection anyway. Instead, I think it makes sense to capture the experience of visiting the museum, and for this task, modern cameras with their excellent low-light performance are more than adequate.
During my visit to the Sforza castle in Milan, I did not even take my fastest lens, instead, I used Canon’s Canon 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM
I often use my camera in museums purely as a note-taking tool. I take snapshots of the works of art themselves and of the side panels that provide reference information (in the hope that some day, I will actually make time to review these notes and perhaps even make some use of them).
On diversification
Whether to specialize in a single subject, skill or activity (to “niche down,” in business terms) or to engage in various fields is a true dilemma, as there is no singe correct answer. Perhaps, niching down carries the higher probability of near-term success, while aiming to become a polymath promises more glory. I am not referring to glory in a conventional sense, or rather not only that, but generally a well-rounded and balanced personality and lifestyle, as well as the potential to eventually make a lasting contribution to whatever the field(s) of activity happen(s) to be (just think about Leonardo Da Vinci!)
I think that it is unreasonable to expect a constant rate of improvement at whatever we do, so it might be a good idea to cultivate multiple streams of activity, so that plateau periods in one would not negatively reflect on our overall perception of the situation.
Gamer’s mindset
I think this kind of gameful mindset plays an important role when amateur photographers transition to being professionals. I am not talking about necessarily taking a plunge to become a full-time pro right away. In my case, for example, I enjoy a challenge of tackling professional projects as mini-missions in a computer game. The similarities between them are numerous: in both cases there are challenges to overcome, skills to learn, people to interact with, etc. I always anticipate success at the particular project, but at the same time, because I am not doing photography full-time, the stakes are not so high that failure is not an option.
On enthusiasm
According to Maria Popova, the author of an enormously popular blog Brain Pickings, in order for a piece of work to have a chance to become an important and lasting contribution to the field, rather count-intuitively, this work has to be done with only one person in mind as the potential audience – the author him/herself. This applies to nearly all areas of activity, and certainly all creative areas, such as writing, arts, sports, academic work, etc.
The concept is counterintuitive, because we tend to think that value equals popularity. This tendency is based on human’s inherent desire for positive reinforcement, so we mistake interest in our work for evidence of its worthiness and value.
With several millions of blog visitors per month, there is no doubt that Popova’s writing is popular. Of course, according to her own thesis, this is not a proof that her contribution is important or that it will be lasting, but she claims to be writing for herself, and her enthusiasm is evident.
