Critical Mass ~ Mono Monday

"Sky Inside Out"

It's a simple thing. But a necessary ingredient for photography. It's defined differently by everyone, and can change depending on the situation. Hopefully it's more of a conscious decision towards having it in a photo, than an unconscious one, but either way, when it's there... you know it.

I'm talking about impact. And photographs without it generally get lost in the shuffle. And it starts when you're out with the camera. I've been out with photographers on walks often and there's two kinds of photographers, or so it feels like. There's the photographer who only raises their camera when a scene or subject really strikes them as interesting or beautiful or dramatic or informative... and later they post them and the impact carries over to the viewer. And I've also seen photographers who simply shoot anything within range and then say, "that might look good in the computer later. Guess we'll see!"

Tell me that's not you. At least not all the time.

Impact. You find it everywhere but it's up to you how to make the most of it. Great shapes could provide it. Great light. Great lines. A cool perspective. An unexpected moment on a street corner, a burst of isolated color... the sky's the limit. But I don't know if we approach our photography this way enough.

And rarely can you create the impact needed later in photoshop if it's lacking somewhere in the image to begin with. I cringe when I hear new photographers decide that instead of honing their camera skills or compositional skills, that what MUST be lacking is more photoshop. I'm sorry, but processing is there to enhance what you already have. And if what you have isn't cutting it already, no amount of digital darkroom is going to make it fabulous. You can't enhance what isn't there. But on the flip side, if you have a great photograph be careful you don't lessen the impact it has by not processing an image carefully so as to preserve it either. It's a balancing act you learn over time. Add personal vision and you have the makings of a pretty great photograph if you make all your choices intentional ones.

Time to make a conscious decision to use impact as one of the first tools of the craft. Keep it foremost in your mind along with finding great light... and then have fun!

Thanks for the mini rant/ramble... have a fantastic week friends!