I have been very fortunate in my life to learn my photography from a long line of “Old Skool” Pro photographers , lecturers , friends and colleagues on a one to one basis , live at the coal face . Although the photo technique , lighting skills and general survival skills within my photographic practice have been picked up along the way from folk I knew well , some of the more subtle hard to learn lessons were picked up from photographers I never got to meet !
The photographs of really good photographers can teach so much !
Photographs are a education within themselves if you know how to read them , you can read them on so many levels , in fact that is one of the most important lessons to learn and questions to ask , what is the purpose of the picture I’m consuming , what does it communicate to me and what can I take from it … ?
Clues to approach , technique , motivation , intent and a host of other clues live within the frame of a photograph awaiting the interpretation of sharp eyed students of photography & casual viewers alike and that is before the viewer engages with the narrative that the photographer deliberately intends us to read …
Consider viewpoint , exposure , lighting , timing , composition , materials , equipment , focal length , meaning etc, etc … Ask why ????
Put yourself in the photographers shoes , ( a good comfortable pair as Hurn recommends ) , if the picture really inspires you , try to recreate it yourself and discover the things you had not considered before you took on the “Imitation Photo Challenge” its not as easy as it first appears , in fact I have had clients ask me to reproduce / update pictures that I created only a year earlier and found it very difficult to copy myself ???
A few years ago I visited The Dickens Festival at Broadstairs as I wanted to shoot a event that Tony Ray Jones had shot 50 years previously , it was both a education and more than a little weird , try it , create a tribute to your favorite famous picture , its not plagerism if its for educational research and you credit the original source ….
Have a good weekend and remember to steal only the best ideas from the very best photographers …
Maintain the mindset of a student forever , ensure each day is a school day …
Dickens Festival , Broadstairs , 2016 , David Barrett
MORE…
If your blessed with a bit more time feel free to visit highlights from my Another Day Off project , The State Of Britain series or The Testing Times pictures , they represent the most turbulent years in modern British history and ten years of my life…
Forty of my Foto What I Took Blogs are still available too …