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A reply left in this thread has me wondering just what is good photography?
Is a photograph to be judged by the degree of difficulty and effort involved in creating it, the harder the effort, the better the image, or is there some other criteria by which we can use to say "Now that's a great photograph!" I'd be very interested in hearing readers opinions on this. - Thorsten.
Something I've noticed occuring more frequently here recently is people responding to requests with replies that are of no use whatsoever to the original poster. I wonder why people do this? For example, a photographer posts that they are seeking a model to work on a specific TFP shoot at short notice and then a model will reply that she can do the shoot but doesn't do TFP! Or a model might post that she is interested in doing a shoot in Dublin and gets a reply from a photographer that he will work with her in Cork! Does this make sense to anyone or am I just losing it? - Thorsten.
I just wanted to say a very big thank you to the beautiful Noreen, with whom I had an opportunity to work with earlier this morning. As a rule, I generally prefer to meet prospective models for a chat before agreeing to work with them as I find this helps both parties relax more when it comes to a shoot.
However, with Noreen being a little bit of a drive away I didn't get that opportunity and only spoke to her briefly over the phone. But that was sufficient enough to give me a good feeling about her and feel confident that I wasn't going to waste my time on a two hour round trip to Macroom.
Sure enough, Noreen turned up at the agreed time this morning in Macroom and what's more, she had done her homework on some suitable locations to shoot at so we were able to get straight to work. As far as I am aware this was Noreen's first ever shoot, so it was quite remarkable how quickly she got into the swing of things with none of the nervousness that one would normally expect to be present with an inexperienced model. I had decided to keep things simple from the outset working only with natural light because in my experience, hauling out a whole lot of equipment and taking the time to set things up can be a bit unsettling for new models. But Noreen's confidence was such that I don't think that would have phased her one bit.
I'm already looking forward to my next shoot with her and hopefully will move things up a notch in terms of a bit more sophistication the next time. That's not to say I'm not happy with the images I captured today - far from it - I'm delighted with them. I haven't had time to really do anything much with the shots from today but have posted one image from our shoot in the gallery - more to follow over the coming days as and when time permits. 
Noreen, if you're reading this - Thank you very much for the effort you put in today!
- Thorsten.
Tags: Nodz Noreen Thorsten
Arising out of a discussion on one of Ciarans threads in the forum, I've put up a poll on critiques in an effort to try and gauge just how many people really would like to have some critique on there images and perhaps get a more critique activity going as a result. Please head on over to the Poll section and cast your vote. If you can't find an option there that fits in with whether or not you would like critique, feel free to post your comments here. - Thorsten.
Tags: Critique Poll
Interesting discussion right now on RTE's Joe Duffy show regarding Eiremodels and Ireland Next Top Model event. Worth tuning in to. Seems like all is not as it should be (no surprises there, to be honest, especially when EUR 300 is involved!)
- Thorsten.
This isn't new or original, but it did make me stop and think. I think that's something we don't do enough of in this day and age as we're all too caught up in the race of life. Anyway, I thought I'd share it here for what it's worth!
GEORGE CARLIN ON VALUES
Comic philosopher Carlin, who recently lost his wife, felt especially poignant when he wrote this gem
about his longstanding serio-comic complaints with society & where true value lies.
The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers,
wider Freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more,
but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time.
We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment,
more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.
We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little,
drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little,
watch TV too much, & pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years.
We've been all the way to the moon & back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.
We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.
We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush,
but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever,
but we communicate less & less.
These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men & small character, steep
profits & shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier
houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality,
one night stands, overweight bodies, & pills that do everything from cheer,
to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window & nothing in the stockroom.
A time when technology can bring this letter to you, & a time when you can choose either
to share this insight, or to just hit delete...
Remember; spend some time with your loved ones,
because they are not going to be around forever.
Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe,
because that little person soon will grow up & leave your side.
Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only
treasure you can give with your heart & it doesn't cost a cent.
Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it.
A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.
Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for
someday that person will not be there again.
Give time to love, give time to speak! And give time to
share the precious thoughts in your mind.
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,
but by the moments that take our breath away.
If you don't send this to at least 8 people....Who cares?
- George Carlin
As a Phase One user, I receive the occassional email from them which often features photographers using their products. But these features are much more than just advertising for Phase One and often give an interesting insight into the work and methods by some of the top photographers in their field. This evenings email was on a Fashion photography theme and featured work by and about James Russell, Christian Ammann and Peter Svenson. I particularly enjoyed the piece about Peter Svenson. I thought I'd share them here for anyone else that might be interested in fashion photography. James Russell (video)
James Russell (pdf)
Christian Ammann (pdf)
Peter Svenson (pdf) - Thorsten.
Tags: Fashion Lighting Photographers
Having a look through all of the new images that have been uploaded here in the past 12 hours or so, it struck me that the introduction of affordable digital imaging has a lot to answer for - most of it good, but a lot of it bad too. Never at any time in the past has photography been as accesable to the masses as it is now. Anyone can pick up a camera and instantly enjoy the image they have just created. It doesn't matter anymore if the image is crap - it didn't really cost anything to press that button! Yes, the initial investment was high, but most people do not factor that into the equation, so to them the cost per shot is zero. Turn back the clock a few years when photographers still used film. We couldn't see what we were producing and photography, even bad photography, was a skill that had to be acquired over time. And then we had labs that would correct our mistakes for us and make a wonderful job of it, particularly if shooting negative film. But all that has changed now and image quality has suffered hugely as a result. I love digital imaging because of the control it gives me which I didn't have with film. But I learned the fundamentals shooting film and those fundamentals are still important. With digital imaging, additional, new fundamentals came along such as white balance although in truth this was something we had to take into consideration and correct for with film as well. I feel digital technology has cheapend photography to such a degree that people no longer care about what they are producing. Or if they do care, they simply don't know the difference between a bad image and a good one. Just look at the huge number of images posted here in the last 12 hours - plenty examples of sunburnt plastic skin, bleached out highlights, blocked shadows, chopped off limbs and out of focus eyes. What's sad about this is that there are some photographers out there that have really strong creative vision - much more than I've ever had - yet their work fails to impress because they've screwed up on simple technicalities like getting the expsoure or white balance correct or been sloppy with their focussing or went overboard on the post-processing of the image. Surely, if it's worth taking the time and making the effort to create an image then it's worth doing correctly. What's the point in producing thousands of images that ultimately have a lifespan of less than a day? People have spent thousands on photographic equipment and somehow expect to be able to take good photographs "out of the box". Spending extra money on things like monitor calibration or a course covering the fundamentals of good phoptography seems just a waste of money. In fact, the opposite is true - spending a little bit more and making that extra effort will help you make the most of you're investment and allow you to truly enjoy your hobby or profession. Start thinking more like a film photographer and make the effort to get the shot right first time. You'd be surprised what a difference it will make to your work. - Thorsten.
One of the great things about doing outdoor location work is how the weather can change from one minute to the next which can really make for an interesting and varied shoot. And one of the worst things about doing outdoor location work is how the weather can change from one minute to the next, playing havoc with the best laid plans! Today was one such day where the weather didn't play ball when I wanted it to. Typical! We've had some really nice weather during the past few days so I figured why not take advantage of it and do a shoot in a location that isn't going to be around for much longer (because the farmer will no doubt shortly be harvesting his crop!) Of course, it's not possible to just head out and do a shoot on a whim - I need to plan my time and make sure it fits in with the models availability as well. So, plan I did! Well, we were supposed to shoot this afternoon. I woke up with the weather conditions I had hoped for. Great! I spent some of the morning checking and double checking my gear. All OK. But as the day wore on, it started becoming overcast. I took a trip to the location to ensure the farmer hadn't cut it yet. Great, it was still there. One big problem though - a mist had started to develop. I thought to myself "think positive" and went ahead and surveyed to location for suitable angles. As I did so, the mist got heavier and the sun dissappeared. At that stage I thought it prudent to call off the shot, reluctant as I was to do so.
It has since gotten colder and even duller and much as I like shooting in overcast conditions, this was a shoot that ideally required blue sky and fluffy clouds. Such a shame that as photographers we can control so many variables except the weather. If anyone comes up with a good way to control the uncontrolable, please let me know  - Thorsten.
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