[BigMackCam]

@monochrome - very interesting. Signora Montessori was clearly very intelligent and perceptive.

That we spend so much energy focusing on sharpness and noise in our images suggests to me that we are moving toward a technocratic documentary style and calling it art rather than expressing what we observe in our subjects and evoking a response in our viewers.

I can honestly say I've evolved in my photography this past year. I progressed(?) through stages of greater and greater "pixel peeping" at full magnification, my eyes inches from the screen, striving for ultimate sharpness,contrast and colour, with minimal noise. I felt disappointed when an image didn't satisfy all of the technical criteria I'd come to expect. But, in a relatively short time, and - I realise now - with an enormous sense of relief, I find myself interested primarily in the creative aspects of the image I've captured (including the techniques employed) and how it looks when viewed from a sensible distance at sensible reproduction ratio. I still care about a degree of sharpness in the original image, and I do tweak contrast, vibrance, noise reduction etc. - but I'm no longer tethered to these aspects. A good image is a good image... That said, many of my photos aren't fundamentally "good", but they're getting better... slowly

---

Last edited by BigMackCam; 01-09-2016 at 09:57 AM.

[Canada_Rockies]

Mike, I have many imperfect images that are great pictures. I know where you are coming from -- when I first got Lightroom I was OMG ! it's not absolutely perfectly in focus! That was way too discouraging. I went back to working with a picture rather than an image.

[monochrome]

@BigMackCam You seem to suggest it is the journey rather than the destination that matters. I agree.

[Rupert]

I like photos that tell a story, or enhance a story told. Not sure that is art....or literature, but they do work together at times. I am not a candid shooter, though I'd like to be, and some of the best shots I see are from those that are. They don't have to be perfect or in total focus to send a message or evoke an emotion. Indeed, many are of poor technical quality.

That's my view of art......I'm sure there are as many views as there are people. This one shot may be as close to art as I have come.....there is a story with it, and the two work together. Since you are my friends here, I will spare you the long story...thank me later!



Regards!

If you have shots that you consider "art"...maybe you will post them here, I'd love to see them...heck, I spend hours here just viewing fantastic shots!

[BigMackCam]

Lovely shot, Rupert

This was one of several I took for the "Single in December" challenge (which I didn't complete, unfortunately, due to more pressing matters). The weather was cold and wet outside, more than I was prepared to endure for my hobby. So I played around with objects at home and tried to come up with some interesting compositions. This was taken with the Q7 and a cheap Chinese 35mm CCTV lens. I used a flashlight and a black cardboard background for the basic photo, then processed in LR6 and Google Nik Pro suite:

[Quartermaster James]

Accident turned art?

[arnold]

This one shot may be as close to art as I have come.....there is a story with it, and the two work together. Since you are my friends here, I will spare you the long story...thank me later!

That is beautiful. I consider it an artistic presentation. As an aside, it seems the prevailing view is that emotions and reason are disconnected realms. I absolutely disagree with that. Emotions devoid of reason can be a problem that sends people to a psychiatrist, in order to trace the source of them. We need good reasons for our feelings. But that is another subject far more philosophical than appropriate for this forum.