Sometimes photography doesn’t need to be technical. Sometimes it more about what the image represents than it being technically perfect. I am sure you have an photo somewhere, maybe one from when you were younger, or one on your phone from recently, that is out of focus, bad lighting, or just silly behavior, or all of these that you just love. It’s because to you it brings back memories, or you can relate to it on a very different level than just on its technical photographic qualities. I want to share with you a photograph that I took over a weekend holidays. Its very simple, most people would look at this image and say Muh!! But to my family this image is perfect in its imperfection.
Great photography is about depth of feeling, not depth of field. Peter Adams
Let me tell you about the story behind this image. This was taken late afternoon on a block of land that my brother owns. We go up there and have amazing family time, we ride motorbikes, talk, laugh, walk, feed the rescued donkeys and alpacas that live on the property next door and generally have a really awesome family bonding time. Its also a place that our dogs who all live in the city can run, play, walk, play, sniff, play, swim, and play without the restriction of space. They love to just hang with each other and be dogs. This photograph is my dog and my brothers dog off on their last walk for the weekend before heading home. It so beautifully shows the companionship and friendship of these two mates but also shows the simpleness that a walk up the hill with you best bud is all about.
Most would look at this image and say “it’s an average image of 2 dogs rear ends” and they would be correct. It for us it the scene that we see often as we walk the dogs at my brothers property. Others may connect to this image as well. It might bring back memories of when they have seen something similar in their lives. The point is that it will resonate with some people and not with others. That is why photography is so powerful. You might create the photo for yourself, but others will have a different relationship with the work that you produce. Isnt that just so cool.
“To the complaint, ‘There are no people in these photographs,’ I respond, “There are always two people: the photographer and the viewer.”
― Ansel Adams
What do you think? Do you relate to this image on some level? Do you have images that you love that are not photographically perfect?
I know this image resonated with my family. Here is my sister in-law’s facebook response when she saw the shot: “As your brother says “only Melissa could take a pic of our dogs at the block and make it screensaver worthy””
So take a moment sometimes to have a think about the fact that what is in our photographs, the emotions, the genuine moments, the feel, mood and the sentiment can be just as important as the technical perfection.