It’s what you don’t put in that matters
I often have a conversation with my online classes with the BPSOP, and in the daily morning reviews during my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshops I conduct all over the place.
In these conversations, I stress the fact that we are artists as well as photographers. We have chosen the camera as our medium instead of a paintbrush, pastels, colored pencils, etc.
My analogy, I say, is that a camera on a tripod is just the same as a blank canvas…with one very important difference. When you start out with a blank canvas, you add content and pigment until you have a finished ‘work of art’. You either work with an image in your mind, or you stand in a three-dimensional environment. You add paint in various hues and begin blending with whatever tools and style you work with, a.k.a. palette knife or brush.
When you place a camera on a tripod you start out with everything you see in the viewfinder and begin subtracting elements/objects you don’t want until you arrive at a finished ‘work of art’.
We whittle down the subjects, the quality of the light, elements of Visual Design, and the relationship between the negative and positive space…hopefully working towards clarity, getting your message across to the viewer.
So, my fellow photographers, when you think about this analogy and you use a camera as your paintbrush, you can’t help but to “make” stronger photos; photos that will show your personal approach to your craft and passion…photography.
Above all, remember that it’s not what you put into a photo that counts, it’s what you don’t put in that matters.
Visit my website at www.joebaraban.com, and check out my workshop schedule at the top of this blog. Come shoot with me sometime.
JoeB
