I can't believe that it has been so long since I last posted here... three years!?!?!? I suppose it is not a coincidence that I assumed my current role at work - you guessed it - three years ago. It has not left me a lot of time to do much photography, at least certainly not at the level that I would like to do it. Additionally, there was a good stretch of time where I was not super inspired. As I learned more, I was getting more (too?) caught up in and frustrated by the technicals for a photo rather than thinking about composition and shooting for fun. Rather than enjoying the process, I have wanted every photo I take to be great, and became discouraged when they weren't great, the composition was blah, and I wasn't having a great time doing it.
The pendulum began to swing back toward fun over the last few months. I went to some workshops where I learned some new techniques, was reminded of others, and witnessed the processes of other photographers. That was liberating in a way because it showed me (again) that getting a really good photo often takes a lot of work, and that the first one you take might not be a winner. In fact, it might be really bad. By itself, that doesn't sound inspirational. But... you adjust and fix what is wrong and eventually end up with a photograph that you can be satisfied with. It reminded me that photographers show you their best work - the images that show what they envisioned; they don't show you all the crappy shots they took. My frustration stemmed from the fact that I was only taking the first few shots and not working through the problems. I just figured I could fix things in post-production on the computer. While you can do some pretty miraculous things on the computer, you can't fix everything. Anyway, now that I have been reminded that you can't squeeze magic out of muck, I am more excited about taking photos again.
So, I entered photos into the Utica Public Library photography show earlier this month, and the Munson Williams Proctor Arts Institute (MWPAI) sidewalk show. Below is the entry to MWPAI.
I went to the show this evening, and I was surprised, delighted and honored to see that my photo had a "SOLD" sticker on the tag!! This is becoming fun again, and other people like the results enough to give up their hard-earned money for it. I am humbled.
