I have this ‘thing’ ping-ponging around within my mind…..where my photography needs to focus on capturing truly creative images. So, when I go out for my street photography walks, in addition to seeking out my projects/themes approach (see previous blogs on); I desire creativity….beyond what others might see. If my images don’t beg a question or provide a ‘wow’ response from the viewers, well, what good is it?
Now, to reach a level of creativity, I feel I need to visualize the final product I desire and then to set my camera functions ‘ahead’ of even pressing the shutter, as opposed to many who simply grab a shot and then rely upon ‘photoshop’ to do the rest, if any. Case in point: The other month (I travel a lot so I think in terms of months as opposed to weeks or days), I went to a photo club meeting where the vast majority of people shared images that were photoshopped. When asked what they did to get that image; well….they simply had no idea. They merely pressed a button.
Even if they could recall the button(s) pressed, I feel their process is inherently the wrong approach ( I.E. Post is not Pre….Pre is not Post). What does that mean? PRE is being creative even before you press the shutter. I am creative ahead of the shutter. I visualize a final scene, and for my photography, this implies that I visualize a world of color and transfer it to high contrast black and white. But the visualization extends beyond that. What should my camera settings be? Set them in the Pre-stage. Adjust the settings now, and don’t rely upon Photoshop to do so.
This is more of an authentic approach in my creativity, as this is done prior to capturing any image, and not as will-nilly with concentrating on software afterwards. Create and know what you want the image to look for ahead of time and get your settings in line. This is easy with digital, and a sure ‘guess work’ with film; trust me on this. But part of the fun with film is experimenting.
So look at the photo below….. pre-set, not post…I wanted the starkness to show. The people; well…an aura of them to be dispersed within the highlights. Did I succeed? I think so….I like this shot. I have a book that it will go in. The point is. Be creative. Be Creative in the Pre-process and not the Post process. Know your settings and know your camera and know what you want from the shot and simply match the settings.
