We all want to make better photos, right?
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When I think about the best photos I’ve made throughout the years, there’s generally a few shared traits, but one that stands out above the rest -I was only thinking about my subject when I took the photo. That’s it! Simple, right? Seems like it would be, but as a species we’re generally pretty good at overcomplicating things. There are other factors of course, good light, timing, luck, etc, but if I want more good photos, and therefore spend time thinking about the thing I can most control, and therefore best practice, it’s focusing on my subject.
And as far as practicing goes, we know that the more we do anything our odds of success increase, even for the improbable, which is what I would consider a good photo - and a good photo is something that I would consider memorable. Or as my friend Mina says "a fridge photo."
Even though this is all art (everything is art if you wanna get into it but that's another topic), it takes practice, dedication, and intention. You can go as deep as you want, but even if you wouldn't call yourself a photographer (you are) and just want to take better photos as you go through life, here is what I propose you practice:
Eliminate every distraction necessary until you can focus solely on your subject, and once you are in that space, practice creating in it.
This sounds like it could be very difficult, but often looks like a person who is more in the moment than in photographer mode, yet still happens to be taking a few photos while experiencing something rather than observing it from a distance.
Let's break that down really quickly:
1: Subject - this is whatever you shoot, trees, people, pottery, animals, action, it's the reason for taking the photo. The more completely focused you are on your subject, the more aware you'll be that the light looked better when they were actually standing two feet to the left, or that you need to move your camera to control how the viewer will see the photo, etc.
2: Distractions - we can also call these variables, not having a place where you can feel comfortable to shoot in, notifications going off on your phone, not having an idea of what you want to do, and the biggest generally being too many cameras and lenses with you.
Great, so what do I do with this?
Start small and start with what you have. Practice is making time to consciously pour effort and attention into something with a hope of building a skill. So if you don't feel like you have "the eye" or whatever they say, don't worry because this is a skill that you can learn if you feel so inclined.
Begin practicing these two things in low/no pressure situations, and work your way up. Whether you shoot landscapes or people, go out on a shoot with the singular goal of being present and making note of everything you can about the subject. Where it is, how it moves, how the light is hitting it, etc. Ask a close friend to go on a photo walk with you while you "mess around" with your camera and let them know you're just trying something out that might not even work. Remove pressure to create that space for yourself however you can at first.
Some of my favorite photos I ever made were Instax photos over the summer of 2017. I shot almost exclusively on the Instax and because there were no lenses to change, settings to set, or focus to pull, I prioritized the moment and the light over anything. You don't need to stop using your regular camera gear and go to an Instax, but I promise you if you pick one body and one lens, or your iPhone, and take nothing else you'll turn into a lot better of an observer. If you want to see a far better example of this check out the work of Kevin Russ. He took only an iPhone and made photos better than any of us because his priority was what was going on around him.
Conclusion
Cameras are great but like anything else they are a distraction. If there's a connection happening between you and your subject they will show it, and if there's not, they'll show that too. If we realize this and practice removing that distraction and paying rapt attention to our subjects we'll all have a lot more fridge photos in the future.
Thanks for the time spent reading this.
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FM