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03-30-2011, 02:32 PM   #1
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photo class

hey all,
i'm in a photo class and my teacher sat down with everyone in the class to discuss where they are in the class and their current grade. i am doing well in the class and she said that all of my photos are good, but they can be stronger. she said that despite the fact that my photos are well composed and technically strong, but they lack "me" in the photo... she said that i need to make the photo my own and show why i took the picture. to me she's saying that i need to put more emotional content into the shot...
so my question is to you guys, what do you do to "put" yourself in the picture? why do you take a photo of something? is there something intriguing or interesting that you want to specifically capture? i just wanna say thanks in advance, you guys are always kind enough to help.

PS- the more i shoot with my k-x, the more and more i like it... it's such an excellent camera!

03-30-2011, 03:59 PM   #2
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It's a hard one to answer, it's like trying to describe the difference between a picture and an image. The best way I found initially to dramatically improve mine, was to get in close and I mean real close, a tightly framed subject at the time of taking the image.

The most famous quote of this being by Robert Capa "If your pictures aren't good enough, you aren't close enough".

Also for what it's worth, any element that's in the viewfinder, ask yourself does it add to the final image, if not get rid of it or change the viewpoint, sometimes less really is more.

Hope this helps.
03-30-2011, 04:09 PM   #3
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I'm guessing there are quite a few answers to your question here because it's not like I know the answer to this either. I took a multi-day landscape photography workshop last fall from local pro. At one point during a critique session he asked me what my motivation for was for a particular image. I sat there for a moment and realized, 1) I didn't know, 2) didn't even think about that when I took the shot, and 3) didn't know that I needed one because I, well, just liked it and thought it would make a good picture. Again I'm guessing that a lot of us here are in this same area - it looks good so I took the shot. Going back to the question my pro asked me, I took another look at the image and 'saw' it with a different view and was able to get some ideas out about why I took that shot.

I think more about my images now when I'm on a shoot and generally have some idea about what I'm looking for. In my film class I'm now taking the instructor has introduced the concept of subject and subject-matter, where subject is what the photo is of and subject-matter is what the photographer's vision/inspiration/thing to be conveyed by the image is. I've not fully gotten my head around these concepts but I think this is where your teacher is coming from. Are your images just documenting what you see or showing what you see, and for that matter what did you see, tell us?

So congrads on your enjoyment of your K-x but use it as a took to express yourself not just report. (note to self: you need to do the same too more often.)
03-30-2011, 04:19 PM   #4
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By definition, no-one can answer this question for you. You need to figure out why you are shooting photos in the first place and the only way to do that is to think long and hard about it, take about 10,000 photos -- each one with care -- and learn everything you can about your craft.

You may not find the answer in time to please your teacher. But if you find the answer in time to please yourself, consider that game won.

03-30-2011, 05:03 PM   #5
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I guess the question is, are your photos documentary or do they convey emotion. While composition and technical excellence can help any shot what the shot tells is just as important. But don't worry, I don't get it right often and I've been shooting for 30 years
03-30-2011, 05:45 PM   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by r00t_b33r Quote
so my question is to you guys, what do you do to "put" yourself in the picture?
I take pictures of things that I care about. If you care about your subject, you'll be invested in it.

Besides that, over time, you'll develop a personal style that works for you, and that will influence what and how you shoot.
03-31-2011, 05:00 AM   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by kerrowdown Quote
It's a hard one to answer, it's like trying to describe the difference between a picture and an image. The best way I found initially to dramatically improve mine, was to get in close and I mean real close, a tightly framed subject at the time of taking the image.

The most famous quote of this being by Robert Capa "If your pictures aren't good enough, you aren't close enough".

Also for what it's worth, any element that's in the viewfinder, ask yourself does it add to the final image, if not get rid of it or change the viewpoint, sometimes less really is more.

Hope this helps.
This is a great suggestion. Another would be to change your perspective. Don't shoot straight on level with your subject. Get lower or move to the side. Try the same shot from two or three different focal lengths.

Tim

03-31-2011, 05:09 AM   #8
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thanks a lot for the suggestions, i will definitely think about what you guys have said next time i go shooting. the biggest thing that i found out during this class is that you really don't need the best equipment to take a good photo... however, i don't think anyone can resist a shiny new prime lens... i love me 50!
03-31-2011, 08:40 AM   #9
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There is nothing like a great lens or really good equipment but...the real deciding factor is the idiot behind all that equipment. I have seen a list somewhere about the top 10 or 15 truisms of photography. One of them is that increasing your equipment by $5,000 increases your artistic ability by $0. Happy shooting.
04-01-2011, 05:11 AM   #10
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black cloud- some of the kids do have some great equipment in the class, but thir pictures are mediocre... i feel bad for this one kid, he's got a canon 60D, a bunch of nice lenses, but the teacher RIPS his pictures...
04-01-2011, 06:21 AM   #11
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Like I said good equipment doesn't automatically lead to good photography. However, I am more of the school that critiques in a teaching environment should be constructive. If you are taking some sort of beginning photography class that's kind of sad. If it is a more advanced one, then I could understand if the teacher is trying to get that kid to do better.
04-01-2011, 09:03 PM   #12
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it's a 200 level course, the kid does technically strong photos and they're all sharp as a tack, but she said that they don't convey any feeling, which is what she's trying to get the kid to do, but he kind of gives an attitude.
04-01-2011, 10:23 PM   #13
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That comment was useless, because it wasn't constructive criticism. It doesn't make sense to say something like that, especially if you're a teacher, unless you can make specific suggestions as to what the student can do to improve. One of the purposes of taking the class should be to learn from what others have done or are doing now, so surely the teacher can provide example of photos that have varying degrees of "me", and explain why. If it's just some unquantifiable feeling she has... that's just pointless and she should keep that opinion to herself.

I never taught photography, but I've taught college classes, and whenever I was critical of a student's work, I (hopefully) always provided an explanation of exactly what I felt was lacking, and could demonstrate a way to do the assignment better. Certainly in the 300/400 level classes I taught, or a 200 level class, there's no need to make a student guess at what you (the instructor) don't like.

Paul
04-01-2011, 10:28 PM   #14
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That comment was useless, because it wasn't constructive criticism. It doesn't make sense to say something like that, especially if you're a teacher, unless you can make specific suggestions as to what the student can do to improve. One of the purposes of taking the class should be to learn from what others have done or are doing now, so surely the teacher can provide example of photos that have varying degrees of "me", and explain why. If it's just some unquantifiable feeling she has... that's just pointless and she should keep that opinion to herself.

I never taught photography, but I've taught college classes, and whenever I was critical of a student's work, I (hopefully) always provided an explanation of exactly what I felt was lacking, and could demonstrate a way to do the assignment better. Certainly in the 300/400 level classes I taught, or a 200 level class, there's no need to make a student guess at what you (the instructor) don't like.

Paul
04-02-2011, 05:20 AM   #15
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Years ago I attended night classes at Sheridan Collage for photograghy. It was great to see others work and see how they did things. I am finding that you still need that need to grow even though you have years of experience. As for "feeling" in pictures, I find having a project of sorts is a great way get you thinking about your subject matter. I have been at this picture taking stuff for 30 yeares as well and there are days when no matter what you try to do, photo's simply not work the way you would like. They are days though when you get stunning images and these are the days I look forward to!!

I have been working on a series of pan shoots taken with my little Fuji S1000fd and S1500 from 2008 to 2010 regarding portrait of the environment. The scenes range from nature to city scenes. It shows that way we are treating the earth. It was eye opening facing the subject head on. You see it all the time but photograghing it makes you think about it. At some point feelings about what you are seeing will come out. I turned into a one off printed book for myself along with some writing to give thew images greater meaning. The Fuji S1500 is my back-up travel camera when I do not feel like lugging the D-slr system out.
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