Photography is as simple as taking pictures right? In this article, I will share my views on what photography is.
Photography defined
If you look up the definition of photography online you’ll find a few variations. The Oxford Dictionary sums it up as the art or practice of taking photographs. To be sure that’s a pretty accurate description but couldn’t there be more to it than that? I think photography can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be. From snapshots with a cell phone to glamour shoots with high-end gear, photography is all around us.
Most likely you are reading this article from your phone. And if we opened up your gallery there’s bound to be hundreds if not thousands of photos stored there. Does this make you a photographer? Yes, it does! But what about the guy down the street who runs a portrait business? You guessed it, also a photographer. Our modern and technological world has made millions of people worldwide photographers. Some people choose to take more control of their images and invest in better cameras but even today’s cell phones are more than adequate for many people’s needs.
So we’ve covered the very basics and minimum of what photography is but what about some of the other aspects? Is it art or perhaps science? As a self-proclaimed dork, I think it’s both and that piques many of my interests. Science, art, and history are at the base of almost all of my curiosities, and photography melds seamlessly into all of them.
The science of photography
This is not a technical article so wipe that sweat off your brow, and let’s get started. Science plays an essential role in photography. It was the sciences and inspiring minds that created the camera to begin with. And the technological advances since that time have been astounding.
I mentioned in my new beginnings post my joy in watching that Polaroid develop in my hands. It was as much magic to me as it was science. And now with our telescopes and satellites we can see distant stars and galaxies that are just as magical and scientific to the mind. Cameras are used in nearly every industry in the world now to perform a variety of tasks. And we now can enjoy those scientific efforts with amazing cameras and continuous advancements.
The art of photography
The word “photography” comes from the Greek words of photos and graphs which means light and writing or drawing. It literally means drawing with light. That concept might seem foreign at first but there is a reason photographers are drawn to specific lighting, or even create their own with flashes and strobes. A very simple analogy is a painter will choose their colors for their palette and the correct brushes while a photographer chooses their light and the correct setting on their camera. Both will produce a work of art in some form or another. The one drawback to using light as your medium choice is the limits you have to control it. In some scenarios, you can control the light and in some, you have to adapt to your surroundings and both require practice and patience but are skills anyone can learn.
This is where things get fun, since we know that photography is an art now we can break it down further into many subcategories. Landscape, nature, wildlife, sport, portrait, Astro, and more. And then there are the options of format such as 35mm film or digital. There are more options out there as well as many niche opportunities.
Being an art there is an endless amount of freedom to express your story. There is no right or wrong way to do things. Now some styles and methods are additionally popular and pleasing to the general public but there are very few boundaries. If you want your mind blown, go to check out Pete Eckert. Pete is completely blind and his work is humbling and inspiring to me. Even if you don’t think you have a creative bone in your body, you never know who will enjoy it.
Ultimately, you can choose to specialize in any style or try them all and anywhere in between. Just know that the more time you dedicate to one form or another the better you will become at it. I have dabbled in many types of photography and consider myself a jack of all trades, master of none. I love wildlife and it shows in my photography and the amount of time I have dedicated to it. On the other hand, I enjoy landscapes, astrophotography, storms, time lapses, and long exposures. I’m competent in all these areas but I’m certainly not amazing at any of them. Photography should be fun though so photograph whatever you’re passionate about.
And the last component of photography is history. Every shutter release records a moment in history. It may not be a remarkable event but it’s still a frozen point in time that can be shared with others. Think of any momentous world event in the last 50 years and I would bet that you can “see” it in your mind, and if not, you can find images of it online. Weddings, birthdays, family vacations, moon landing, wars, natural disasters. Big and small occasions all recorded in history through photos. History adds a component that makes a photo more than just a snapshot. A story. All great photos tell stories. If you learn any one thing from reading this, that is the best tip I have. All great photos tell stories. I have tens of thousands of photos of wildlife that people may consider wall hangers, and even to me they are nice images. The only reason you won’t see them is they all lack stories. Let me paint a picture for you… (you see what I did there?)
It’s a nice photo. I was happy to have gotten it. I even shared it on my social media profiles. Will this ever grace the walls of my man cave? Probably not. I call these record shots. I can show that I saw a particular bird and have a nice portrait. These are also sometimes called field guide shots. Now there is nothing wrong with this type of photograph so if that’s what you like, go for it. I often go for these shots to help me identify what I found that day in the field.
Now this tells more of a story. Believe it or not these images were a shot just moments apart. I repositioned for a darker background and set my camera and waited for the action. As he took flight he shook all the frost off the tree and added a nice element I wasn’t expecting. It still wasn’t what I had wanted but it is a more memorable photo. Action photos are great for telling stories but require a lot of patience and luck.
In short, photography is all around us and nearly everyone uses it to some degree or another. If you’re looking to improve your skills, keep checking in here for more articles, tips, and how to guides.