I'd like your opinion on my life decisions

[jsamra]

I really want to hear your opinions. I started out my creative career really wanting to be a photographer. Somewhere along the lines, that changed and I kind of abandoned that dream when established photographers started tearing my work apart. I never called myself anything more than a dude with a camera that aspires to be better.

I ended up getting into producing films, music videos and running a record label, but now that I’m looking at all of these faux-tographers, I feel like I shouldn’t have been bullied into abandoning something I cared about. So, I haven’t done a shoot in about 3 years, but here are a bunch of random shots that I’ve taken over the last 2 years. All candids. All black and white. I really like black and white. Give me your opinion. Am I as bad as I thought I was, or is there even a shred of talent here that I could pursue. It’s not too late. I can always start again. I just don’t have enough free time to dedicate to this AND to film and music.

Here they are: http://imgur.com/a/3OhZP

Keep in mind, I want your honest opinions. I’m a big boy, and can handle it now.

[cameraclicker]

A couple of them have a certain mood.  The only one I really like is the guy playing the Roland organ.  If there were coloured lights, that might look good in colour too.

I should say I am not that fond of black & white.  I have seen some excellent B & W, but most do not move me.

[stef]

The guy on the Roland might be better with a decent crop. It had some promise.

 

Otherwise, I didn’t really see much. For the type of photography you do, you might be interested in shooting unit stills. You can’t really make any decisions about lighting, since the cinematographer will be doing that. Use some of your connections and find out from producers if you can try it. While film is rolling, you need to be on your game, but during cuts you can shoot stuff you like (like what you showed, above).

They will still need to get a “pro” if they need other shots, as unit stills is responsible for props that involve images, too. So, make sure you check on whether they’ll be needing that, first. Don’t put yourself in the position of making bad prop images for them.

 

From that sample, I’d say you are a fauxtographer. You might be able to find a niche, though.

[jsamra]

Thanks guys. Only the one at the top and the bottom are on sets. The Roland one is at a show I produced. The baby… I forget whose baby that is.

I’m okay being a fauxtographer, because I don’t really want to be a photographer anymore (or just don’t have the time…). As for on set photography, I’m usually the one producing, so I can shoot whenever I want. I’ve never thought about art and props… I’ll keep that in mind and maybe help some friends (if they want it).

Once again, thanks!

[titli]

I wouldn’t take the opinions above as gospel. What are they saying exactly? that you need to work on your photography and because of that you are a “fauxtographer?” I think you should follow your own heart and if it is a subject passionate to your heart go after it. I am not a “photographer” but i like your photos. They have feeling and they are presented in an interesting and intimate way. Keep in mind that you are not shooting to impress other photographers. Who is your target audience? Do you need other people to approve your art? Does the fact that at this moment in time you don’t have the same technical skills as them mean that you cannot aquire those skills.Go after your dreams and stop apologising for it.There will always be critics. You need to take your vision and put it out there and to hell with critics. learn your craft and improve on it, don’t settle for second best. And…find the time. OH..and don’t accept that stupid tag. You are not a fauxtographer. You are a person who has picked up a camera and found a way to express your vision, and I would say in a tasteful and interesting way. How many brilliant artists in history have been criticized for their work? Its a good thing that they didn’t listen and just kept going. I don’t think anyone would get anywhere if we didn’t start by first picking up a camera and being passionate, I think you have artistic talent and a good eye, the technical knowledge you can pick up as you continue to fire off those shots and strive to better yourself. I like black and white.

 

 

 

[stef]

titli, keep in mind he posted in the “Am I a fauxtographer?” forum. He was directly asking other shooters what they thought. This forum has taken on the life of a fairly harsh critique forum, but is not driven out of harshness, but lack of face-to-face hesitation (and sometimes lack of manners, but that’s another issue).

I wouldn’t take the opinions above as gospel. What are they saying exactly? that you need to work on your photography and because of that you are a “fauxtographer?” I think you should follow your own heart and if it is a subject passionate to your heart go after it. I am not a “photographer” but i like your photos. They have feeling and they are presented in an interesting and intimate way. Keep in mind that you are not shooting to impress other photographers. Who is your target audience? Do you need other people to approve your art? Does the fact that at this moment in time you don’t have the same technical skills as them mean that you cannot aquire those skills.Go after your dreams and stop apologising for it.There will always be critics.

[Loke]

I don’t see how he qualifies as a fauxtographer? I don’t see overly processed photos, out of focus, or other shots that would “qualify”…..if candids are what you like to do and you want to pursue that style then you need to learn how to tell a story..not just take a bunch of “candid” snapshots….find a subject that captures your interest and shoot it…..like follow a film crew around and document their week…..as for shooting…you shoot for yourself not for other photographers…do painters paint so that other painters will approve?

I’m sure alot of painters in the day probably told Picasso he painted like shit. lol…..you do it for you first……seriously, don’t give up.

[Loke]

and as a photojournalist, I liked your second (baby) and  last picture…it makes me wonder what they are doing……photography styles come in all shapes and forms…..so I could never tell a studio portrait photographer how to take pictures or what I think is good work…I can guess, but I don’t know ..you could show me 20 shots of the same pose and I could tell you they all look good…………and photojournalism is more than just candids….so I wouldn’t expect someone who primarily does portraits to understand why I shot that person at the bus stop..or why it’s so blurry, or why I didn’t get a straight shot…. I would expect an editor to know that….catch my drift? lol.

[mchilliard]

Well, given the fact that you are producing films and music videos, not to mention running a record label, as long as you’re enjoying it, I think it’s safe to say you’ve done fairly well on at least a few of your more major life decisions :).  In terms of aspirations in photography, based on what you posted, I think you definitely have potential and may have been judged too harshly in the past, including some of the previous replies.  Of course, anyone’s reply is going to be based on their experience, expertise, and, at least to some extent, their personal opinions, but I’ll do my best to make a case for you  and back up my claims along the way.

Let’s talk about your images.

Shot 1: Right away, I liked the first shot.  The contrast and the depth of field (if you haven’t noticed this before, you’ll rarely see “depth of field” spelled out–everyone just writes “dof,”occasionally with some capitals thrown in) might seem off at first blush, but as a toned, soft-focus shot, it actually works (and the contrast is actually good–you have good blacks and whites, with good gradation between them–the slight sepia tone just shifts everything a little).  What I liked in particular is that the shot has a sense of storytelling to it–there’s mystery.  I wanted to know what was going on.  As a single image, it wouldn’t be very strong, mostly because it lacks a main subject to focus on, but as a part of a series, it would be a good early shot in a progression.

Shot 2: I liked this shot, too.  What makes this shot work is the kid’s facial expression and hand gesture–with the somewhat-squinting eyes and sideways glance, I felt it had a mischievous quality to it.  The dof is good, nice and shallow to isolate and emphasize your subject, but still retaining enough detail in the background that we can figure out the rest of the scene.  The focus does seem like it might be a little off.  With portraiture, one rule that should almost never be broken (unless you’re doing it on purpose, with a good reason) is to have the sharpest point of focus be on the eyes; in your image, the focus looks like it’s sharpest on the nose.  Focusing on the eyes can be hard to do, especially with a candid (as opposed to a posed) shot and, with an SLR, you can learn to adjust the size of your focal plane to control how precise you need to be (a wider/deeper focal plane, using a smaller aperture,  would give you a little more leeway that would be helpful in a candid situation).  That said, as an amateur, I’d still say you did pretty well, given the circumstances, because the emotion of the shot is still carried and other technical details, like your exposure and composition, are good.

Shot 3: Although I liked the pose and the facial expression, this image suffered on the technical side a little more, making it harder for me to appreciate what would have otherwise been a nice shot.  Your exposure, composition, and toning are all fine, but the point of focus is a fair ways off.  Somewhere around the chest and upper arm are the areas most in focus, when it should be sharpest on the eyes and face.  Here, the fairly shallow depth of field didn’t give you enough leeway to get the focus that far off and still have the shot work.

Shot 4:  I’m going to disagree with the previous poster and say that this is probably your weakest shot, not the strongest.  Although the exposure is decent (the highlights are a little blown [too bright] in some places) and the dof and focus is alright, the composition is suffering in several ways, mostly due to a large number of distracting elements cluttering up the frame.  Something that took me a surprisingly long time to figure out is that, taking a picture of something that seems cool to me–and this could be anything, from a musician on a stage to a section of cracked concrete, a flower, a building, a sign, etc.–doesn’t work unless I’m able to figure out exactly what it is that I like and successfully manipulate the camera, equipment, and tools I have at my disposal to properly translate that cool thing into a coherent picture.  In the case of your image, the smoke on stage and the intensity of the musician are interesting, but the microphone sticking out of his head, the stands, the macbook, and all the other detritus are filling up the frame, stealing attention away from the interesting parts.

Shot 5:  This image, like the first, has a sense of scene and story that makes it interesting.  The dof and focus are strange, probably not where you want them to be, and the blown out highlights are probably a little too strong as they are (this kind of scene can be really hard to work with, albeit very rewarding if you can get it right).  The problems make this shot not nearly as strong as the first image, and the problems aren’t ones that can be fixed in post.  Still, I think this shot at least shows that you identified an interesting scene and framed it well, even if the negative aspects ultimately outweigh the positive ones.

So, what should you make of all this?  You definitely have potential.  I think you see in stories and you already do a pretty good job of finding compositions that help you tell the stories you see around you.  That’s a talent that can help with many kinds of photography, including photojournalism, documentary, and portraiture, among others.  If you get your technical chops up to par, it will most definitely help you bridge the gap between fauxtographer and photographer, moving away from snapshots and toward fine art.  You’re headed in that direction already, and I guarantee that your experience in other artistic mediums–whether music or video or any other creative medium–has helped you think that way.

Personally, I can’t afford to be a starving artist (though I still feel like one sometimes!) so photography and the arts have to take a backseat to pre-med studies.  That said, I keep putting time in, taking art classes on the side, reading books and forums, watching videos–and most important, practicing, learning to critique myself, and trying to get feedback from others.  Calling myself an artist still feels a little pretentious to me, but I have had my work accepted into competitive juried shows, received positive feedback from other artists I respect, and I’ve become confident in my skills and what I do and don’t know.  I don’t hesitate to call myself a photographer, and I don’t really care if anyone disagrees.  Regardless of how long a person’s been shooting or what their skill level is, having the right mindset makes a huge difference.  I think many of the best photographers wouldn’t hesitate to describe themselves the same way you did – “a dude with a camera who aspires to do better.”

My best advice: Chase your passions.  If that includes photography, then keep pursuing it.  Should you open up shop as a photographer tomorrow?  No, but in a couple of years, if you are serious about practicing, learning, and getting feedback from the right sources, you might be ready.  Good luck!

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