Do photos ever make you re-evaluate your own work?

[koven]

When you see really good photos do you ever think "i should try harder and post less" or do you simply enjoy the photo and keep doing what your doing.

I always wonder what is that separates the great from the average photographer. I think the main thing is patience, self control, and only posting your very best. I've been shooting for 6 years and have nothing on that level but the picture motivates me to do better. When I say do better, I mean I'm going to try to make my images interesting and if its not, I wont post it.

 

[Spicy]

No, I already know I'm the best























...at taking exceptionally mediocre pictures, that is, hahaha.

For sure, others' great pictures make me wants to study more/try harder. Another fun exercise is going back to your early shots and either looking at them to see how much you've grown, or going back and re-processing them (either with the negative or in Lightroom/photoshop) and seeing what you can get out of them. Don't forget that processing is a skill as well, one that will develop over time, and it often doesn't get as much attention/appreciation as general composition/exposure skill (which is no less important).

 

[Black]

Ironically, as recently discussed with another member here, I find that people who post on photography forums (not excluding myself) spend far too much time "talking a good photograph" rather than taking them. Proof is in the pudding/put up or shut up is arguably a good policy.

 

[koven]

Ironically, as recently discussed with another member here, I find that people who post on photography forums (not excluding myself) spend far too much time "talking a good photograph" rather than taking them. Proof is in the pudding/put up or shut up is arguably a good policy.

I rarely participate in the discussion on here but I do read them and have learned a lot from them. It allows me to reflect on my own photography and gave me new perspectives I never thought of before.

 

[Black]

I rarely participate in the discussion on here but I do read them and have learned a lot from them. It allows me to reflect on my own photography and gave me new perspectives I never thought of before.

Yep. I'm guilty of the same - and, I can only speak from a personal perspective, but, for me, its pretty much the same case. Less think, more do. As much as I enjoy learning from others and, for want of a better word, philosophising over photography, my output does not equate to the amount of time I spend thinking about photography. And, in an ideal world, it should, if not over take it. Nothing can substitute practical application.

 

[fireblade]

Inspiration comes from many different mediums....one being the work of others....its all good....even the greats needed inspiration.

 

[lynnb]

Good work encourages me to try harder and be more disciplined. Sometimes it also gives me ideas - not necessarily related to the subject matter. Posting only your best is very good advice - most people, myself included, don't edit as well or as rigorously as they could.

 

[Keith]

Less actual images from photographers and more the output of other artists from different genres inspires me.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I spend most of my time working on my photography, either shooting, processing film, scanning film, editing the scans or shots from my digital camera, and writing the captions and stories for my website. I don't need to be reminded or told to spend more time on my work. I do enjoy looking at other people's work.

 

[MickH]

When you see really good photos do you ever think "i should try harder and post less" or do you simply enjoy the photo and keep doing what your doing.

I always wonder what is that separates the great from the average photographer. I think the main thing is patience, self control, and only posting your very best. I've been shooting for 6 years and have nothing on that level but the picture motivates me to do better. When I say do better, I mean I'm going to try to make my images interesting and if its not, I wont post it.

I enjoy the photograph and move on. Many of the people whose photography I enjoy have more skill, talent or dedication than I have. I post few photo's anywhere. I know my limitations, and, as Harry Callahan said, 'A man's got to know his limitations.'

 

[Sparrow]

... but do you feel lucky?

 

[noisycheese]

I have come to realize that I poke the buttons on my laptop far more than I poke the button on top of my camera, AKA the shutter release. That has got to change.

They say actions speak louder than words and that a man's actions define him. I don't want to be defined as a keyboard commando. I want to be defined as a photographer, by myself as well as by others - but by myself most of all.

My new mantra is "photograph and develop more, type and less."

Have a great weekend, all. I won't be posting again until I have made at least one new roll of Tri-X negatives. 😀

 

[hepcat]

I greatly enjoy the work of others. What is photography if the images we make aren't to be enjoyed?

 

[shadowfox]

When I see a great photograph, I store the impression that I got from it (not the photo itself).

In my mind, after years of doing this, there are now rows and rows of "shelves" where these impressions are collected.
When I go out with my camera, I observe the scenes in front of me while my brain goes through these impressions.

When a scene came up that matches one of the impressions, I take the picture, and that becomes the "raw" part that I would process, and later some of these would become the photos that I can confidently call my own.

Therefore, no. Great photos does not make me evaluate my own work, it is part of the process.

 

[John Bragg]

Photographers and their style influence me more than individual shots. I think it is consistency and technique that makes an individual great, eg Mary Ellen Mark. I love her use of Tri-X and how she makes it record every tonal nuance of her subject. That inspires me to do my best.

 

[Sejanus.Aelianus]

... but do you feel lucky?

I've been counting, you used up your last frame on the kitten.

😀

 

[Richard G]

I've been counting, you used up your last frame on the kitten.

😀

Oh very well done. Callahan himself just wasn't sure whether it was six shots or five. It was James Bond who was sure, in Dr No. "That's a Smith and Wesson, and you've had your six."

 

[jsrockit]

I find that people who post on photography forums (not excluding myself) spend far too much time "talking a good photograph" rather than taking them. Proof is in the pudding/put up or shut up is arguably a good policy.

Or it could be that some of us post while we are stuck at a desk. I don't post when I'm at home and can be doing something else. Anyone on this forum that knows me personally knows that I photograph a lot and they see my work often. I just don't post my work to the internet anymore.

And yes, great work is inspiring and makes me try harder to be better in my own work.

 

[rwintle]

I have come to realize that I poke the buttons on my laptop far more than I poke the button on top of my camera...

^
Awesome. 🙂

As for the original question - yes, frequently. I am often floored by how good photos from others are, whether it be work from a "vintage" pro I see in a book, new stuff on a website, or even things I trip across on Flickr. Often I think "wow, how could I do that?", or "I wish I'd thought of that", or similar.

This inevitably leads to feelings of inadequacy and lameness. Once in a while, but not frequently enough, these turn into the energy and will to get out and shoot more.

 

[daveleo]

When you see really good photos do you ever think "i should try harder and post less" or do you simply enjoy the photo and keep doing what your doing.
. . . . .
I always wonder what is that separates the great from the average photographer. I think the main thing is patience, self control, and only posting your very best. I've been shooting for 6 years and have nothing on that level but the picture motivates me to do better. When I say do better, I mean I'm going to try to make my images interesting and if its not, I wont post it.

I am always impressed by pictures (photos, images, paintings, mixed media stuff); always think what it has to tell me in terms of my own pictures. I am constantly re-evaluating my work, my talents, and what it is my next picture needs to say to the viewer. Mostly that keeps me in a state of mental blockage, and I don't make very many images that the world needs to see.