You are driving into Yosemite Valley, Yellowstone National Park, or your local favorite spot, and your struggle is finding a different point of view, something visually important, pleasing that has not been done many, many times. That is especially difficult if you are photographing something for the first time. Those iconic images are the most impressive, by definition, and it is just plain hard not to copy, when the visual is so powerful. But being led by the past does not develop your own photographic eye, it's OK to be impressed by the past, use the past as a knowledge point, but the journey for improving your personal eye requires a new route filled with failure, growth and success. It's built on good technical skills, and understanding of your destination, and an openness to new visual interpretation. A simpler way of saying, stop, look around, invest in observation before you use the camera. Try something new, maybe lots of things, new, angles, perspectives, subjects, and above all don't judge yourself or allow others to discourage you. Think about it, if the outcome were easy, everyone would be constantly coming up with new visual interpretations. That's simply not true, what is true is that iconic images are iconic but tiresome no matter how well done. They awe the unseen, but bore the experienced. I'm not saying if you want to capture an image that has been done a thousand times, don't do it, don't let it be the final output of your effort, to copy what many have seen and admired. Let me make an analogy, if I'm a great painter, my ability to copy the Mona Lisa says a great deal about my technical skills, but the real genius was creating the original image, conception of the image makes the painter great, the technical skill to create is important but the minds eye is the triumph. So with your photographic journey, technical skill will take you so far but the triumph is seeing the world differently, developing an interpretive style, making people think, drawing emotion from your images.
The wonderful part of this journey albeit filled with mistakes and failures, it is exciting, fulfilling, creates an energy all its own which propels growth and reward. The growth is in the development of your observation skills which have application in everything you do in life, the reward is in seeing and knowing you are making progress on a very, very difficult journey. The journey takes you out of the ordinary into the magical, creates new maps, new destinations with progress markers that you recognize and cherish. Our world is interpreted by our senses, to focus on their development will enhance our minds ability to function and improve our sense of direction, and ultimately make us feel better about ourselves through an improved lens on our environment. The word environment conjures up many images by itself, in this context I simply mean the world around you, your garden, studio, neighborhood, or the focus of your work.
Now comes the bad news, there is no prescription for this, no textbook, course, degree, or person who can lead this journey. Many things can help, but you have to lead your own journey, much like the frightening notion of walking off into the woods with only the help of your senses as your compass. This is where it begins, using your imagination, being open to new things, leaving your judgmental default mode behind. Hiking in the metaphor of unknown woods, meeting others on a similar journey, getting discouraged, making small progress, developing a style, learning to appreciate your own style, being able to adjust are all way points. And just maybe, your destination will change, keeping you on this journey forever, a trip with purpose but without end, becoming a vagabond with an image legacy that you can look back upon and simply simile.
In my journey, I simply want to be able to smile.
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