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Think of “OTHERS”

As a photographer, you take pictures and you do so because you want to show how you see things and all this happens through the visuals you produce.

So, it’s more about how “others” see your pictures more than how you yourself see your pictures.

Things are very simple, nice and pleasant as long as you keep your pictures to yourself.

On the contrary the whole idea of producing pictures is to showcase it to an audience. Earlier when there was no internet, people showcased their work to their friend’s families or clients through actual prints and that too face to face, now it’s become more easy to showcase your work through internet via websites, blogs, social media etc.

Today your work can reach millions in a fraction of second. You want peoples feedback, comments, reviews when you are showing your work to them.

You may be producing an image for a client or for a cause. You may be a professional photographer producing images for the company you work for or you run your own company. You may be an artist or you are just learning photography.Your role as a photographer may differ as per your aim for what you are shooting pictures.

But in any case, and role, you are sure going to present your pictures to that specified clientele for which you shoot for.

In Simple words, you take pictures which are judged by “others” (until unless you don’t show your work to anyone at all)

So, in a way you are shooting for “others” or you may say you are shooting for yourself and trying, that they can easily understand for what you want to convey through your pictures.You want to present your idea and thinking by your pictures without making your viewers confused.

Why don’t “OTHERS” like my pictures though I love them ?

The art is in understanding how your image will be interpreted by “others” and not how you see your work.

This situation mostly develops when we as a photographer can’t see our work being totally detached from it. We forget that the viewers see the visual without all the information and stories which are attached to it during the whole process of producing it.

Photographers have lived the whole process and they even know all the information and stories which are beyond the final frame which they are presenting to the viewers.Photographers makes this huge mistake of not being able to realize that the viewers are not seeing what he/she has seen and lived.

So just don’t get emotional and attached to your work. See it from “other” people’s point of view.

See how they will interpret your image. Try to understand how a layman will feel when work is presented to them.

I agree that it’s your work, it’s your art and it’s the way you think and shoot, but what’s the big fun when most of the people (80% to 90%) can’t understand what you are producing.

Don’t make it an ego issue, rather try and produce work which can be appreciated and understood by almost anyone and everyone.

The real challenge is in bringing out your art, ideas, concepts and soul through your work in a balanced combination where you say what you want to say but in a way that can be understood too.

Never get stuck to a visual because it’s so dear to you though it might not have any content for “others”. Stop living in a fantasy world where you think you know it all. Stop producing shitty work in the name of being different. Face, it that your pictures will be judged by “others” the moment they are out.

Accept the fact that we all want our work to be liked and appreciated by “OTHERS”

So, remember “OTHERS” is very important!

These “OTHERS” are the one who will see your pictures when you are done with your part as a photographer in producing what you thought was right.

If “OTHERS” can’t get what you want to showcase in your work you fail for sure.

PRODUCE WORK WHICH CONVEYS YOUR IDEAS, THOUGHTS, ART, CONCEPTS AND VISUALS WHICH REACHES THE HEART AND MIND OF EVERYONE IN THE SIMPLEST  FORM (without any support of words or title, stories or explanations)

START SEEING THE WAY THE “OTHERS” SEE

© ashok verma  2nd April 2017

MY PHOTO BLOG 

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Give Something Extra

 

VISUAL LITERATE VIEWERS 

Yes that’s for sure that we need to provide our viewers with something extra then what they have been seeing every passing second on this www, world-wide web which is flooded with millions of images. We all have access to these visuals which are shot by professionals, amateurs and even by people who are not even bothered about by what photography is.

These pictures come in all sort of shapes and size and the variety of content is beyond ones imagination. Our eyes are scrolling these images throughout the day, and we hardly have any choice to avoid them, we see them no matter we like them or not.

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So what is happening is that our eyes are getting trained to see pictures every passing second, and the Hard Disk of our brain is storing this visual information subconsciously.

This unlimited access of visuals to us  beside we ourselves being the part of that lot who are flooding the web with these images, has sure given sense to almost 99.9% of us for what is a good visual/picture and what is not so good or bad picture.

I may not be wrong in saying that we all have become critique or at least we all have defined our lines for what is good and what is a bad picture.

“Beware, don’t take it lightly for everyone is visual literate !”

THE CHALLENGE

So now we know that everyone understands pictures, images or visuals whatever you may call them. Viewers of your pictures are sitting there with their sharp eyes and immense sense of understanding  about the rules of photography. They have their own predefined guidelines to interpret the images you are presenting them. They may be professionals or amateurs or even a laymen but the moment you present your work to them, they are the one who will decide whether you created an image which is wow or just a LOL.

As a photographer and knowing all these facts we need to produce images which are just not what everyone is producing. Shooting an image with right exposure and a great composition will not lead you anywhere for sure.

Everyone is doing so, everyone knows how to shoot with right exposure, they even know what rule of thirds are, they know about leading lines and all that bookish stuff. They have already seen all this stuff in thousands of images.

So what are they looking for actually or what is that thing which will make your image standout and be a hit.

Why are some images liked and why  some don’t even get a glance ?

As a photographer you need to deliver something “EXTRA” besides all those regular bits which you are supposed to have in your pictures by default and as your duty for being a photographer.

What can be this EXTRA thing, where do You find it, how do You get it, how do you insert this thing called EXTRA in your picture ?

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If a picture can stop you and make you think twice… Bang ! I can guarantee that the image sure has got that thing called EXTRA in it.

Yes this is the thing which everyone is looking for to imbibe  in their work and to make viewers stop by and connect with your picture which triggers them to think, how, why, where, when, what and mummer the word called ‘WOW’ at last.

Now go ahead and press that rewind button of your memory, you will sure recall that all the pictures you have liked in past, did trigger those things which i mentioned above.

If your picture is not able to perform this phenomena it will fail. Viewers want to be amazed, they want to be surprised, they want to be shocked they love suspense, they are looking for something  which they have only visualized but have not seen ever before. The viewers are curious and sensitive that’s why they want to be connected to your image but you need to give them that content and connection in the stories you present to them thorough your pictures/visuals.

Don’t ever forget that the viewers want to see this “EXTRA”  not alone but in combination with your regular skills and understanding of photography which you will sure have to incorporate in your pictures be it technical or aesthetic part.

So if you have mastered the so-called regular skills of photography and aesthetics and are ready to explore for more, why not search for that thing called “EXTRA”. Trust me the moment you discover that “EXTRA” and are able to include it in your visuals, you sure will attain the attention of the ever-growing visually literate viewers in this world-wide web of visuals .

27th March 2017  © ashok verma

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YOU ARE JUST ONE PICTURE AWAY

ALL YOU NEED IS ONE IMAGE
That ONE picture will change everything you see and shoot and in a fraction of a second you become a photographer you always dreamt of being.
Yes, this a fact, you just need that one picture to be clicked by you which will transform you and your photography to the next level. The moment this image is captured by you, you understand every bit of photography, you suddenly learn what to click, how to click, how to see and how to make your photograph just not a photograph but a piece of art which is loved by everyone who sees it (almost everyone)

After this moment, you start seeing things differently, you start seeing images everywhere around you, you start to see light so differently, you become some other person all of a sudden.
You start wondering how the same old camera and same old you with same old eyes is producing all new images with so much of impact.
This is no magic this is no trick this is no supernatural power too.
This has happened to all those photographers who are now well established and are doing great images which we all love and get inspired by, and this will and can happen to you too.
But the catch here is this will only happen if you love what you are doing and this love for photography has to be real crazy stuff… you need to live it day in and night out you need to be in it and on top of that you don’t need to leave it in between when you are not doing good.

This one great picture will sure happen but for that you need to keep clicking and clicking and clicking not like crazy but like a crazy lover…who is ready to understand what he/she is doing; who need to face mistakes who need to go beyond limits.
This one great image which is the game changer will have to be shot by you and only you. No teacher no mentor no photo walks or talks will produce this image but you. These all may become a medium for you to reach there but it will have to come from within you.
The rule is simple, don’t stop and give up. When you feel that you are not getting there that’s when you need to go out again and try more.
This image is stored deep inside you somewhere in your head and to bring that out all you need to do is keep shooting.

It will never ever pop out by just reading the best of the photography books, or by seeing the works of great photographers and attending talks and workshops only.
The only technique to bring this one image out of your head is to shoot, shoot as much as you can.
If you do what you are doing with 100 percent of yourself given to it, if you keep your eyes open, open to see what wrong or right you are doing, with your mind and heart always ready to learn and absorb and if you love not to give up at any cost, you will sure soon get that ONE IMAGE which will change you into a photographer you always wanted to be.

So get up friends and go out and shoot a lot without ever giving up and let that ONE GAME CHANGER IMAGE COME OUT FROM YOU AND TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE AS A PHOTOGRAPHER :
© ashok verma

PHOTOGRAPHERS KILLED

 

The best and the easiest way to become a photographer is to buy the best and latest camera and then attended the best photo workshop in town. The aim is to reach on top in just few “DAYS”. Everyone is looking for a shortcut to make it big. Everyone is living with the illusion of being creative.

The Big Question

Is photography just as easy as it looks from distance?

In past year or so I have witnessed an overgrowing trend of attending photography workshops by almost 80 to 90 percent of the so called passionate photographers.

They have almost everything for what it takes to be a great and established photographer, all that they are missing is a “PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP”.

One fine day they make up their mind and they are ready to take a plunge into this great workshop being conducted by the best of the photographer with amazing work under his/her belt.

They register, pay money and are excited to return back, being transformed into a great photographer. They have already started to dream of great images they will be able to capture by the end of this photo workshop.

The Other Side Of Story:

The fact is very bitter for what happens after these workshops.

1. 98% of the people who were at least doing some sort of photography on their own before attending these workshops suddenly stops doing photography. They just disappear from the scene of photography totally.
2. 98% of the mentors who conduct these workshops have never attended any workshops themselves, they have reached this far on their own. They learned the art of photography not in few days but it took them years to reach where they have reached.
3. A workshop of few days overloads these new photographers with so much of facts tips and knowledge by the mentors which they themselves accumulated and learned slowly and gradually spread over years. This immense bombardment of sudden knowledge poured in the heads of these newcomers, shatters them and their dreams by the end of these workshop.
4. They return back with utter confusions and low confidence and suddenly they see themselves as nothing when they start comparing themselves with their mentors and the knowledge they possess. It’s now they realize that it’s not a matter of few days to reach where they want to reach. It’s now they understand that photography is not about owning that camera they bought. It’s at this point they realize what passion actually means.
5. Now they take the easy way out because it all started with becoming a photographer in the shortest span of time. There is no shortcut to reach where you want to reach. The best shortcut is to quit and this is what I see happening, People join these workshops and 98% of them quit photography and they disappear from the scene.

The Lesson

1. There is no shortcut to learn photography.
2. Photography Workshops helps filter weak and unfocused photographers.
3. Photography Workshops can’t transform you in few days to be a great photographer.
4. Understand the meaning of passion.
5. Slow and steady learning will take you there, you can’t become a photographer overnight.
6. Not all photographers who quit photography after these workshops were bad, weak or unfocussed, it’s simply that they were overloaded with tons of information in a short span of time during these workshops which confused and demotivated them instead of taking them further towards their passion.

QUESTIONS

Are photography workshops killing new photographers?

Are workshops just filtering weak photographers?

Are workshops designed to motivate and guide newcomers?

Are workshops the only way out?

Are workshops just meant for polishing your skills?

Are workshops producing great photographers?

Are workshops imparting too much information?

Is Business of photography workshops overtaking the intention of imparting knowledge?

 

Street Photography The Art of Seeing Things and capturing the Decisive Moment

Here is a link to the selected street photography work by APF Magazine street Photography Group

The Decisive Moment