What’s stopping you from becoming the photographer or even the artist you hope to be? How many of them do you control and what can you do to overcome the barrier?
The journey to becoming a photographer, developing your skills, reaching and building your audience, as well as the never-ending cycle of learning, forgetting, and re-learning makes for a life-long process. Unless one decides to give up photography altogether and never hold a camera for artistic purposes again, the creative journey takes a parallel path to all of our endeavors in life.
Most photographers would agree that learning to photograph and pursuing beautiful subjects and phenomena to photograph is a journey full of excitement, wonder, and fulfillment. However, this journey of great potential is also never free from the limitations and disappointments they cause. These limitations hinder progress toward our self-defined goals and any self-imposed definition of success. How many of these limitations can we manage and overcome? How do we make progress amid circumstances that constantly slow us down?
Camera equipment is limited
Probably the most common and most talked about limitation is the capabilities of the camera equipment they currently have. These obstacles can be due to the overall image quality their camera can provide, limitations on the focal length range of the lens, low light capabilities, focus, frame rate, etc. Experienced photographers will certainly say that less effective camera equipment is not recommended. considered a limitation. However, the truth is that in some cases, especially at a stage when a photographer is learning specific genres that require specialized functions, these limitations can be real and availability Having more capable devices can be very important.
On the other hand, in most cases, perceived limitations of camera equipment may stem from a desire for better looking equipment or new features that make photography convenient. Especially in the context of simply taking pictures for practice without any printing or publishing requirements, we can say that any camera is good enough as long as the user knows how to use it. right way. Technical aspects of a photo, such as resolution, sharpness, low-light performance, and noise, can hinder a photographer from producing the best prints, especially when a copy is desired. larger print, but for the sake of learning and developing both art and engineering any camera, including smartphone cameras, can be a viable learning tool.
Every camera, no matter how advanced or expensive, will have its limitations. There is no such thing as a perfect camera in every shooting situation. There may be cameras that will come close, but these are likely to be cameras that even working professionals can’t easily afford. All in all, no matter what kind of camera you’re using, it’s important that you know its limitations and find ways to overcome them one way or another. A photography project can always have challenges, especially if it’s something worth paying for. The photographer’s role is not just to point the camera and shoot but instead to identify and solve these problems in one way or another. Being “stuck” with poor quality equipment can be the perfect place to start learning as these limitations will push you to find ways to improvise and improve in the midst of any limitations. There are thousands of ways to improvise using DIY lighting, filters, adapters, and even home tools, and finding these is a great way to learn the principle behind these lights. that limit. While having good equipment is always an advantage, being limited by equipment can be a great starting point for learning.
Accessibility to learning resources
It can be said that at least for the part of the population that can read this article, this limit is no longer in effect. Before the internet became ubiquitous, perhaps three decades ago, people would have to rely on learning resources that had any form of distribution in their area. Learning resources come in the form of books, magazines, seminars, formal training, and perhaps later in that period video tutorials. Of course, there are two factors that will come into play, namely the overall availability of materials and the photographer’s ability to purchase them.
Today, with a smartphone, tablet or computer, and any stable internet connection, any aspiring photographer can access a wealth of learning resources in the form of books, articles, and articles. news, video tutorials or even simply by asking for help on a public forum. Needless to say, the internet has made (for most people) incredibly easy to find and learn what they want to learn.
Social skills and self-esteem
One thing that not a lot of people say about photography is the fact that one doesn’t just need to know how to take pictures. One way or another, the social aspect comes into play, whether it’s seeking help and guidance from more experienced photographers, the ability to connect and guide models, communicate with an audience to promote your artwork (or business), or simply be confident enough to showcase your work. This is probably the most difficult challenge to overcome and it takes a lot of determination to do it. Perhaps one thing to consider, however, is that instead of seeing it as a limitation, one can treat it as a guideline.
Knowing such personal limitations is quite similar to knowing your strengths and weaknesses. As a beginner photographer can jump from genre to genre, learning as many styles and approaches as possible, this probably won’t matter. However, when one begins to focus on a particular genre, it is important to understand that any step leading to the end result reaching the intended audience will require more than just clicking. shutter button and will most likely need some form of communication. It is important to be aware of such aspects of a person’s personality to find the type of workflow that suits you best. If a photographer has trouble working and communicating with others, perhaps the genre of photography for them is also one that doesn’t require it. On the other hand, it’s clear in the industry that some of the most successful portrait photographers are those who communicate very well with their subjects. It’s not about getting rid of your limits, but about finding your own strength and following the path that turns it to your advantage.
Imagination and artistic vision
Perhaps the least talked about yet most important aspect of being a photographer is having and developing your own artistic vision. No matter what type of photography you take, the goal is to get a photo that pleases the viewer, a photo that sends a message, or both. To be able to do this effectively, creativity plays a very important role.
Photography is heavily hindered by people who impose restrictions on the work that photographers do. Across all generations of photographers pursuing beautiful images, there have been those who have created boxes that put limits on what is acceptable. From using film to digital, using filters, post-processing, double exposure, composites, etc., there is always debate about whether such methods are the right approach. rules in photography or not. Photography has been downplayed as an art form compared to more traditional approaches in the visual arts, which is why it’s ironic that even among us photographers There are still those who fail to see and accept that if photography is really art, it must be free and the artist’s expression must remove (as much as possible) limitations.
The only valid limits to what a photographer can do should be those drawn by context and ethics. For those who seek to learn, progress and develop their own art, they should make use of an abundance of styles, methods and technologies. If photography is being done for specific people as authorized work, their preferences must be considered, which may or may not translate into acceptable limitations. On the other hand, if a photograph has the potential to be misleading or harmful in any way, it’s ethical to draw a line based on the meaning of how the photo will be used.
