----- Original Message ----- From: "CheekyGeek" <cheekyg...@gmail.com>
To: "Pentax-Discuss Mail List" <PDML@pdml.net> Sent: Wednesday, November 17, 2010 9:16 AM Subject: The Sam Abell thread (1)
http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/Photography/Images/POD/a/aboriginal-teenager-504198-sw.jpg ( http://on.natgeo.com/903wXD ) Is the "greatness" of this image due to the photographer or the unusual subject? Put another way, if we put ME in that water, would this be a compelling image?
It might be if the light was interesting, your expression was emotionally compelling, the colors helped to tell the portrait story, and the photographer made good camera-setting-decisions that complemented the subject matter or revealed the photographer's vision of the portrait story.
I'm sure there are really crappy pictures of the "exotic" out there; exotic content doesn't guarentee a great photograph.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_FNndI0BvPNA/S7AXaamrd8I/AAAAAAAABLA/HNtibpofTPA/s400/Abell7.jpg ( http://bit.ly/cU3pDu )
Agreed. This is a great photograph. Very dynamic--great layering of images. Lovely tones.
Course I had to say that or reveal myself a moron, didn't I :-).
Sam also has some quotes that are worth of discussion, or at least consideration. One that I particularly like is: "It matters little how much equipment we use; it matters much that we be masters of all we do use."
This is a point I've read over and over in interviews with the world's great photographers, and despite my recent posting of my Pentax dream kit, I totally agree with Abell's point here. And I also agree with underwater Nat Geo Photographer Steven Doubilet's point, which he made in a documentary about Nat Geo photographers, that equipment does matter, but, of course, he would agree with Abell when he says it's the mastery of the equipment we do have that counts much too. In the end, when you can get the camera you've chosen to take the picture you envision, then you've succeeded.
Here's Doubilet's web site if you're not familiar with his name; no doubt you've seen his pictures.
http://www.daviddoubilet.com/ Cheers, Christine -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
