Modern Living – © John Neel

Passion is only a part of photographic image-making. Asking yourself a few questions can help you with the rest of it.

When you have a passion for something like photography, you do whatever you can to make the best images possible. You try to choose the best subjects, pay attention to your light and insure the best exposure. You make compositional decisions and find the best angles. You are conscious of every aspect of the scene.

Great!

For the most part, you are probably drawn to beauty and attractive subjects. You have some amazing equipment, the best cameras and the sharpest lenses. You even own Lightroom or perhaps Photoshop and have read everything you can get your hands on about using all the latest technology. You might even own the latest technical books and have tried out those fancy ‘how to’ and ‘what to do’ tutorials that are everywhere on the web.

That is probably good!

You probably know quite a bit about making a photographic image. Your technical skills are growing every day.

Wonderful!

But perhaps you might ask yourself a few questions:

• What is it that you are actually photographing?
• What is your subject and why do you want to shoot it?
• What questions do you ask yourself about your subjects before and after you shoot them?
• Do you feel that the subjects you shoot can alter the way you think about them?
• Do you believe that your images will affect others in the same or similar way?
• Do you believe that your images will affect others in some positive way?
• Do you think about the negative impact that it may cause?
• What do you hope to gain from shooting the things you shoot?
• Do you see the act of photography as a way of learning about things you never considered before?
• Is there something that you would like to express that may have a deeper meaning to your viewers?
• Do you see photography as a way for you to be closer to the things you photograph? Is your camera an extension of yourself and your thinking?
• Are you looking to perpetuate the truth?
• Are you obsessed with certain types of subject matter?
• Why?

I believe that all of these questions and many others are worth asking yourself as you think about your responsibility as a photographer. There are so many more images in the world today. Most are trivial, hyped, fiction, bad or offensive. Are yours contributing to the confusion or to a better understanding of the world? Is your passion for making images going to produce images that are worth the time that others need to see them? Or are they going to be a waste of time for all of us?

Couple – © John Neel

There is an addiction that can happen with the passion for something great. If you are one with your subject, your imagery will have a better chance of touching the viewer. I believe that if you are truly in sync with the subject, you are on the path for becoming a greater photographer.

There are two participants in every image, the photographer who makes an image and the viewer who sees the photograph as an experience. Great images can transform the artist and the viewer. One of the key elements of great photography is passion. However, passion alone does not do it. If that were the case, anyone with a camera and a desire to make an image would be a good photographer. We all know that is not the case.

In order to make a great photograph you need a worthy subject, a competent knowledge of the medium, your camera, a positive motive for making an image, something to say, and surely, an abundance of enthusiasm, caring, concern, compassion and love for your subject. I believe that the love and compassion are the important pieces. Without these, you have nothing!

But, the most important is the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ that inspires you to photograph. It makes the biggest difference in ‘who’ you are as a photographer.

Passion is one of the prime reasons that I photograph. Having something I can share with others extends the passion to others. I believe that we should say something with our images so that others might hear our voices through our works. Photography in its highest form is an extraordinary medium for communicating truth. Photography requires an audience. Participation is what makes the language of photography function to its fullest. Searching for and speaking the truth is as important in photography as it is in any language.

All of your photographs are self-portraits of who you are and how you think. The viewer will judge your images by how well you can make yourself understood to others. Make sure you are communicating something that will make a difference in all of us. You should make sure you are not contributing to the abundance of chaotic and confusing images that obscure the path to collective wisdom.

Think about it! Try to make a difference!

Please have a look at some of my other posts here.

Rethinking Digital Photography

You can read about my book “Rethinking Digital Photography” here.

NOTICE of Copyright: THIS POSTING AS WELL AS ALL PHOTOGRAPHS, GALLERY IMAGES, AND ILLUSTRATIONS ARE COPYRIGHT © JOHN NEEL AND ARE NOT TO BE USED FOR ANY PURPOSE WITHOUT WRITTEN CONSENT FROM THE WRITER, THE PHOTOGRAPHER AND/OR lensgarden.com. THE IDEAS EXPRESSED ARE THE PROPERTY OF THE PHOTOGRAPHER AND THE AUTHOR.