Can a personal unique vision in Photography be taught?

[jsrockit]

Can a personal unique vision in Photography be taught?

Technical concerns and the history of the medium can be taught, but can you teach someone to have their own unique personal photographic vision or is that vision something one can only obtain from doing Photography on one's own terms (following their own path)?

disclaimer: (1) I know it is very hard to obtain a unique, personal, photographic vision and that most people don't. (2) This is with regard to personal work and not commercial work.

 

[ChrisN]

According to Google, there's plenty of people who will take your money and teach it! 😀

Good topic. Personally I doubt it, but that probably depends more on the student.

If it can be done, I suspect it centres around building on the strengths in your own work.

 

[daveleo]

I can't make a global comment on the question, but I can speak to my own experience.

First . . . I don't know that I have a "unique vision" of the images I want to make, but I am confident that, before I mount and matte my "good stuff", I am very happy with the pictures and each one is my "take" on the matter. I do not make pictures anymore to please other people. (Is that a personal vision?)

Now, my point . . . I learned to do that, and was given the moxie to do that by an artist / photographer, whose work is wildly bold, and (what I will call) courageous. If that is "being taught how to have your own vision", then I have to say that someone taught me that.

(Footnote: I have no delusions about the quality or the uniqueness of my work in comparison to the real artists out there, so I hesitate to "lecture" on this topic.)

 

[djonesii]

Given talent .....

Given talent .....

Given that a person wants to develop such a vision, and that the have some modicum of talent, yes, the tools need to develop a personal vision can be taught.

Understanding the mechanics is important ... I twist this knob, I get that ...

Understanding what other folks have done is important, otherwise, It's just copy cat by happy accident.

In addition, the subject mater of interest has to support that vision, so for example, there is not a lot of personal vision necessary to document my kids swim meets, or in the portraits that are on the buttons we sell. I get the mechanics right, documents made. Much it true of documentary travel shots, and wildlife, get there at the right time, get the mechanics right, and there you have it a document. This can be easily taught.

So clearly, the subject matter choices, and intent of the photo must be made so that they allow this vision to be expressed, and I think that can be learned, and the analysis skill taught.

Will this personal vision be interesting enough to be commercially successful is a different matter, thus, while some folks have the vision, the keep it to them selves!

Dave

 

[maddoc]

I think an absolute commitment to photography and a basic talent "to see" what works and what does not work are the important basic things to develop an unique vision in Photography. The rest is practice, experience and most difficult a very critically editing of the own work.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Can a personal unique vision in Photography be taught?

I don't think so, just as much as you could teach someone to have a "personal unique" singing-voice. You can teach someone to have the foundations. Personal and unique are that, and not given to you by someone else --which would not make it personal or unique.

 

[jsrockit]

Personal and unique are that, and not given to you by someone else --which would not make it personal or unique.

But you can get nudged in the right direction and what is unique about your work might be pointed out to you by someone else if you didn't notice it for yourself no?

 

[Keith]

I don't know about being taught but I feel if you hang around artistic people with vision you learn to think differently .... in a way they're teaching you.

 

[paulfish4570]

one can be taught how to use the tools.
one can be taught art (including photography) history (examining the work of others is important).
one has to go his own way from there. whether that yields a particular vision is up to the photographer.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

But you can get nudged in the right direction and what is unique about your work might be pointed out to you by someone else if you didn't notice it for yourself no?

Correct. Like I also said above, you can teach someone to have the foundations. You can even inspire them. But a "personal unique vision" is not taught.

You can teach someone to fish, but not discover a new species for him. Or better yet:

"I can only show you the door. You're the one that has to walk through it."- Morpheus to Neo in the Matrix.

 

[JeffNYC]

But you can get nudged in the right direction and what is unique about your work might be pointed out to you by someone else if you didn't notice it for yourself no?

Very True..

Also, you can have a unique point of view that lends itself to a well defined body of work.

 

[kbg32]

In a word - no. No one can nudge you, prod you, or show you till your eyes bleed. It really is all down to one's self. You have to do the work. There are no shortcuts. We are all unique and see the world in different ways. Why copy someone else, when you can do it your way, yourself? Persistence, perseverance, and hard work from the heart will get you where you need to go.

I had an instructor once say, "If you have seen it before, don't press the shutter release."

 

[jsrockit]

I don't understand.. Why do you care?

Because I like to think about things...

I guess I should have asked a lens serial number question instead. 😉

And why not with commercial work? Some of the most successful commercial photographers have a unique photographic vision.. Avedon, Penn, Maisel, Haas..

I don't get it..

Because I'm not exactly interested in commercial work and it is my question. Each one of the photographers you listed did personal work as well.

Can an aeronautical engineer be taught to be "creative" - Like Johnson or Sikorsky?

I have no idea. Seems to me that a photographic artist and an aeronautical engineer might not have the same agendas.

Sorry to have ruined your day with my question sir.

 

[The Meaness]

I think we have to go through a process of gaining information about what we want to do, imitating those who do what we want to do, and then innovating the process in a way that is personal. I am not even close to knowledgeable about being a great photographer specifically, but this is what I've seen work for other skills I have some kind of competency in.

I think personal vision is something you can only have if you have mastered some lower levels of the expression and grown through that - or you have unreal natural talent.

 

[sig]

You can probably be taught how to find your personal unique vision.

 

[Sparrow]

... all this time I've been feeling disappointed that all my photos keep coming out like, well, like my photos ... perhaps someone taught me that at collage ... when I wasn't listening, I did that a lot back then, drink I suspect or worse

 

[mdarnton]

Probably it can be taught. First you take a student, have him/her make some photos, then, each one that's been done before, you zap them with a cattle prod. If nothing else, at that point, they'll make an effort to gain some perspective on the history of photography. From there, if you keep it up, they'll be incentivized to find their own unique vision.

If someone can internalize that process, the cattle prod part isn't necessary. That's sort of the process I go through every time before I push the button; not looking for the unique, but at least wondering if what I'm about to do measures up against the inventory I'm carrying in my mind of what's been done in the past (I'm old: "unique" seems a bit too much to ask of me). It saves me a lot of film.

The problem may not be instilling respect for the unique, though; it may be harder to find a vision that hasn't already been adopted by someone. At this point, for instance, I get the feeling a lot that I'm imitating myself, which doesn't seem like a good thing.

But, basically, creativity always involves thinking the unthought, and going from there. I always try to understand the opposite of everything I think, as an exercise, but I'm not sure how that could be put into photos.

 

[krötenblender]

"Can a personal unique vision in Photography be taught?"

I don't think so for two reasons:

If a particular unique vision is meant, then it can not be tought for logical reasons: If it is tought, it is not unique anymore. Less irony: You copy your teacher, which is neither unique nor interesting at all.

If the question means teaching to have a unique vision oneself, I do not think, that creativity or "visionarity" can be tought. You can learn the basics and many tricks from your master and you can be encouraged to be unconventional and nonconformist. But to become unique in your vision, you have to develop that yourself from your life-experience and creativity.

 

[Bill Clark]

I believe every person needs a coach.

Someone to help, guide them along with this journey called life. This person serves as a mentor and friend, gently urging to do better by offering positive thoughts on how to do better the next time.

Sports professionals have coaches, mentors. Celebrities in the arts, particularly actors have mentors and coaches to help them, urge them on when they get down.

I believe a photographer needs the same. What it takes is a willing person/photographer who will listen, work with their coach, realizing this person wants to help. With photography I believe a necessary foundation is needed, learning the basics. Then each of us can go about making images as each of us sees the world. You can break the rules to achieve your world view but how are you going to break the rules if you haven't a foundation of the basics?

I belong to our local PPA affiliate, TCPPA.org. We serve to help our professional photographer members in many ways, one which is to help them with their vision.

Yes, I believe a coach/mentor in developing my vision with photography. Mine was my friend Monte Zucker. I'm still sad because he is no longer here. But he lives on with many of the people who have adopted his philosophy of business and have learned the basics as he taught us.

 

[FrankHarries]

Teaching can be encouragement - and a good teacher will find the slight signs where the student got hold on to his very unique talent and vision. To focus on that, to help one to get in touch with those moments (or pictures) is a committed way of teaching to develop (and to listen to) ones unique vision. In the regular (school-)world we are too often taught whats's right and wrong, learning to do the "right" thing and to copy what ever is wanted. Learning something else is an unique experience by itself, not always pleasing others, but if done with respect for your fellows, it leads to oneself - photography is ONE expression, as art is in general. Necessary: the student needs to be hungry and searching - if you just want to BE - no way to get there in my opinion!