A really interesting article James and some beautiful photographs - congratulations on your NLPA success.
I agree with your points about what makes a successful image although I tend not to analyse my images in that much depth before I enter them into competitions. However having said that my most successful image to date (category runner up in LPOTY 2021) definitely had an obvious story to it which I felt gave it an emotional edge.
At the end of the day it is all very subjective and the key thing for me is not to take it too seriously. As long as I am happy with my work and feel I am producing images that are relevant and interesting then that is all that matters.
Thanks Gill. The photo of Piemans Falls came very easily - the composition, the light and the story were clear to me at the time. It was very unforced. For most of my images, it is only later, often when reviewing on screen and editing, that I realise the elements are all there to make a really compelling image. Perhaps I'll get better at seeing the story with more experience?
These points are very helpful! They may not be a formula that is repeatable every time, but I believe keeping them in mind will definitely improve my photos! Thanks!
"A really excellent photo needs to demand the viewer creates their own story." It is a rare photo that tells its own story, so yes, the viewer has to fill that story in. But I would say the more basic factor is that the viewer wants to know what the story is. And then maybe they can create their own.
That first photo is amazing. It looks so much like a painting, though, that I wonder if they judge thought it was overprocessed.
One thing I've learned from my exposure to exhibition judging, is that the image must capture the eye in a moment, because a judge doesn't have long to look at each image. Once it has caught their eye, they may spend a minute with it and discover the subtleties, but if subtleties are all it has, the image will be passed over.
A question I often ask in writing this newsletter is how much should I explain the story I see in my images? I tend to limit myself to the behind-the-scenes taking of the photo rather than what is/could be happening in the image (I did hesitate before describing in part the story that I see in the third image). I want to create a tension in the viewer between wanting to know what is "the story" and the story they are creating in the absence of an answer (“It is not what you see that is art; art is the gap.” Marcel Duchamp).
And I agree, images definitely need that immediate appeal. But the best ones grow on you!
A really interesting article James and some beautiful photographs - congratulations on your NLPA success.
I agree with your points about what makes a successful image although I tend not to analyse my images in that much depth before I enter them into competitions. However having said that my most successful image to date (category runner up in LPOTY 2021) definitely had an obvious story to it which I felt gave it an emotional edge.
At the end of the day it is all very subjective and the key thing for me is not to take it too seriously. As long as I am happy with my work and feel I am producing images that are relevant and interesting then that is all that matters.
Thanks Gill. The photo of Piemans Falls came very easily - the composition, the light and the story were clear to me at the time. It was very unforced. For most of my images, it is only later, often when reviewing on screen and editing, that I realise the elements are all there to make a really compelling image. Perhaps I'll get better at seeing the story with more experience?
These points are very helpful! They may not be a formula that is repeatable every time, but I believe keeping them in mind will definitely improve my photos! Thanks!
Thanks Erik. If only they were repeatable - we'd all be legends!
Haha! True!
"A really excellent photo needs to demand the viewer creates their own story." It is a rare photo that tells its own story, so yes, the viewer has to fill that story in. But I would say the more basic factor is that the viewer wants to know what the story is. And then maybe they can create their own.
That first photo is amazing. It looks so much like a painting, though, that I wonder if they judge thought it was overprocessed.
One thing I've learned from my exposure to exhibition judging, is that the image must capture the eye in a moment, because a judge doesn't have long to look at each image. Once it has caught their eye, they may spend a minute with it and discover the subtleties, but if subtleties are all it has, the image will be passed over.
Thanks Kevin. It is about balance.
A question I often ask in writing this newsletter is how much should I explain the story I see in my images? I tend to limit myself to the behind-the-scenes taking of the photo rather than what is/could be happening in the image (I did hesitate before describing in part the story that I see in the third image). I want to create a tension in the viewer between wanting to know what is "the story" and the story they are creating in the absence of an answer (“It is not what you see that is art; art is the gap.” Marcel Duchamp).
And I agree, images definitely need that immediate appeal. But the best ones grow on you!
I think that telling how you felt about that third image was a part of the story you were telling with the whole post, and was definitely helpful.