Comments on Fluffytek Art Blog: Help me. My Finger Is Getting Sore.

Just keep shooting! You'll find your niche, style,...

2008-09-03T01:27:00.000+01:00

Just keep shooting! You'll find your niche, style, and workflow as you go. For now...shoot, shoot, and shoot some more.

It's said that the more you shoot the better your ...

2008-09-02T16:01:00.000+01:00

It's said that the more you shoot the better your eye will get. If rapid fire works for you go with it. Just be sure to use another finger for the delete button. That way you won't over tax your shutter one.

I think this line really sums it up.

"...my photographs bring me a lot of pleasure,..."

As I see it as you develop more skill you'll just get more pleasure. Don't worry about the tech stuff, it will slowly work it's way into the process. I think if you just take a second before the delete to look at why your deleting that image it will soon sink into your brain not to make that mistake again. When you look into the camera you will start to see that it's going to be too dark, the pole sticks out of his head, the wall is crooked, the horizon is not level, it's too bright, their moving, I'm moving, you will start to make the adjustment you need to get a better image. If ya think about it all the time, by the time you get the tech stuff going you missed the shot that will make ya happy.

Snap,Snap,Snap,Snap,Snap,Snap,Snap.
Delete,Delete,Delete,Delete,Delete.
WOW...Hey Rich look at this great shot of her laughing...priceless.

Of course this is coming from a guy whose last image was of some plumbing so I got it back together right. So I'd throw a little salt over your shoulder before I'd take my advice to heart. :-)

D.L. Wood

editing is as important as shooting. if you're wil...

2008-09-02T02:34:00.000+01:00

editing is as important as shooting. if you're willing to edit through thousands of images to find the best, sometimes, that one, killer best, ok, i guess that works for you. if not, you might want to consider limiting the number of exposures you capture. there no right way and wrong way to shoot, leastwise, in terms of how many pics you capture. I've had models in front of me where I captured fifty to a hundred snaps and i turn to her and say, "ok. I've got it. I'm done." other times, it takes three or four-hundred before I feel I'm done, i.e., I have what i need. Often, as long as I have "the shot" amongst my captures, clients don't care if I shot fifty or three-hundred.

In the book I'm working on with Irakly Shanidze, h...

2008-09-01T22:02:00.000+01:00

In the book I'm working on with Irakly Shanidze, he says a photographer must master all the technical issues before she tries to create art. When the technical becomes second nature, you will be better able to swiftly respond and capture the moment.

I am really just trying to parrot what he said, so I hope this makes sense. If it doesn't, it's my fault, not Irakly's. Of course, he's gone off to Russia, so just don't tell him!

They both are to a certain degree but I think that...

2008-09-01T20:09:00.000+01:00

They both are to a certain degree but I think that the photographer that has the vision will win out over the one who’s hoping that the odds are with him/her. That’s what I mean by learning your craft, it still doesn’t happen over night for forever for that matter. You’ve obviously reached a stage in knowledge that you’re making judgement based on that knowledge, i.e..., you know what you don’t want or are not happy with. Don't get me wrong I make no judgements on your photos in the past but now you know a different set of values to use in judging your images. With all the thing you have on your plate you’ve add another layer and that’s good. From here refine you vision based on that knowledge you’ve acquired and I think you will find your own vision. It doesn’t matter what Rich thinks or what I think this game is all up to you to decide. And don’t be so hard on yourself your approach is fine because getting there is half the fun.
Michael V.

O.K. Let's clarify something here.I've been taking...

2008-09-01T18:15:00.000+01:00

O.K. Let's clarify something here.

I've been taking photographs a lot longer than a week. I've been doing it regularly since I first had a camera at about the age of fourteen, from my first box brownie upwards. I’ve taken many thousands of photos in my time (haven’t we all?) but I’m trying to move out of the “snapping a photo with minimal thought and everything set to auto” to real photography. There’s a difference. I’ve no idea if I’d qualify as a “newbie.” Rich would say yes because I don’t know my f-stops from my apertures. I’d say yes because although my photographs bring me a lot of pleasure, technically (compared to Rich’s) they’re crap. Rich takes a great deal of time to set up and work out a particular shot in detail, I just shoot in bulk, with minimal thought for the mechanics of the process. Sometimes I get a humdinger of a shot (by chance presumably) but most of the time I don’t. So the evidence would thus point to slow and careful yields results. On the other hand, I know of a great many photographers who shoot many hundreds of photographs per shoot, in the belief (usually correct) that they will get a few sweet ones from the bulk.

Which is the right way, if any?

In my opinion you’re comparing apples and oranges,...

2008-09-01T17:36:00.000+01:00

In my opinion you’re comparing apples and oranges, Rich’s skill and talent are a result of years of practice and though. You are still considering your plan and charting your course. First and foremost get your exposers down and learn how to think on the fly camera wise. Then you start to refine your look as you develop the knowledge of what statement you are trying to achieve. And then you can really define your craft as you get more ideas of what you want to accomplish, and it doesn’t happen after only a week of shooting. You learn patience and to stalk your images; I’ve always’s thought of it as hunting. Find the place where the game lies and the pick out the best subjects and shoot them in their natural settings. Enjoy your quest and enjoy the learning.

Michael