Getting a Perfect Photo - What is a Perfect Photo? One of the first things photography students often ask their teachers is how to "fix" their photos. There is an idea out there that a photograph can be "perfect" and you only have to figure out how to make it perfect in order to be a great photographer. The reality is that there are no "perfect" photographs and there is no magic formula that will make you a "great photographer". Photography will always be a subjective art form. A photograph can be composed, exposed, and printed to exacting standards and follow all known conventions of composition and exposure but still not be "perfect" to everyone. People perceive the world in different ways. Blue is not the same to everyone, nor does everyone perceive the same amount of illumination. Even more, people have different emotional triggers that cause them to react differently to images. A photo of a peanut butter sandwich may make some hungry while others instinctively reach for an epi-pen. Can we use compositional guidelines and a strong knowledge of exposure and other photographic tools to make our photos better? Of course we can. Using the Rule of Thirds, understanding the Golden Ratio, knowing what lighting has which color spectrum, using depth of field to our advantage, and knowing how our cameras work are just a few of the things we can do to help make our photographs better. But there is still no "perfect" photograph. To seek that mythological creature is to find only disappointment. The best we can do is to continually strive to improve our understanding of how to make better photographs so that we please ourselves with our art. From Liz Masoner, former About Guide
Posted on: Fri, 30 Aug 2013 06:54:31 +0000