I am new to avid photography. I recently discovered the possibilities that come along with taking pictures. I viewed photography as one dimensional and simple. Before, a couple of years ago I saw it as just clicking a button. However, the day I realized the power of a photograph my view on the art changed. I found a picture of Obama looking into a mirror right before his inauguration. It was the first time I looked past what was “in the photo”. I began to wonder what he was thinking about, and how he was feeling. More importantly, I also hypothesized what the cameraman was thinking. After seeing this picture I began to look at every picture through the eyes of the cameraman. What are they thinking? What do they want us to “see”?
As my photography hobby grew I began to see definite trends in my photos. For one, I take a lot of pictures of nature. It is everywhere, always ready to be documented. I find it fascinating the amount of angles you can look at nature. It surrounds us, but at the same time we surround it and control it in certain ways.
I also take a lot of pictures of things I am interested in, such as cars and sports. I like to walk around my Dad’s car and find interesting shots hidden in the alloy’s curves. I also enjoy the power of the perspective when it comes to cars. Any car can look cool from the right angle. From Smart Cars to Lamborghinis, the photographer is in control of the viewer’s experience. When it comes to sports, I like to document things in motion and capture moments that are often lost because of their speed.
However, I have noticed one huge trend in my photos. I almost never take “arranged” pictures of people. I never ask people to “smile for the camera”. It makes me feel really uncomfortable asking people if I can take their picture. I feel like it puts my photography ability on the spot and I do not like it. But, I enjoy capturing candid moments of my friends and family.
Thinking about it now though, I am glad that asking people if I can take their photo makes me uncomfortable. I believe a key aspect of photography is documenting, but are you really documenting when you have everyone stand together in a “well-lit” spot and put on a fake smile? In the future I aim to capture more candid moments of more things around me, not just friends and family.
Also, in almost all of my pictures I like playing with light and focus. I enjoy photographs that play with focus and sculpt with light. In my recent photos I have tried to emulate what I have seen professionals do (with little success, yet). Overall, I am trying to take my photography more seriously and begin to intensely look at professionals and learn about their techniques.
I tend to ask the question “What do they want me to see?” quite often as well, it is something that I think about when taking a photo, “What do I want them to see?” I think it is awesome that you enjoy photographing cars. Your photos are absolutely beautiful and I enjoyed the way you presented your reflection!
I found it interesting that you wrote about how the photographer controls the viewers experience. I think this is one of the special aspects of photography. In real life we spend most of our time focused on getting to our next destination without putting in the effort to notice what is around us. It is almost as if we are going through life blind. The photo allows us to concentrate our attention on something specific, something we might not have noticed before.