Do you practice?

[Norm Buchanan]

In my youth I was a serious student of music and hence spent MANY hours practicing my instrument so that when I needed to perform, my "chops" were there at my fingertips. When I moved to the US in 2003 I bought my first camera, a digital Canon (G3) and shot like mad for a year or more (literally 10s of thousands of images taken in the little parks around my apartment) which allowed me to learn about photography and get a feel for it. Since then I have gotten more serious and started learning about different cameras and techniques and started shooting only when inspired. Now I am starting to feel the urge to practice in a more disciplined manner like I used to in my music days. I have pulled out some volumes on portraiture and still life so I can painstakingly reproduce the images as practice. Please tell me I am not the only insane individual out there who does something so mind numbing. Hopefully it'll pay off! I'll post an update down the road.

[Mike Boden]

I don't 'practice' per say...that is, take shots specifically to maintain technique. Instead, I just try to shoot as much as possible, because my memory has a way of forgetting that which I don't do all the time.

On the other hand, if I haven't used a specific camera or technique recently and I plan to use it soon, then I will break it out and quickly refresh my memory.

[David A. Goldfarb]

Sometimes I do when I'm trying to learn a new thing--usually lighting related.

[rippo]

as a fellow musician-turned-shooter, i can relate. i do practice, and like David Goldfarb, it's mostly for lighting. if there's a new technique i'm trying to figure out, then the wife or kids often get subjected to living room portraiture.

the difference between music and photography is that with music, you're often performing the same piece of music over and over, and have formal performances that have to go right the first time. with photography, every shot that you throw away was 'practice'. every shot you keep is the performance. so there's less of a need for formal practice in this medium. that said, it can still be beneficial!

[Michael Gordon]

Isn't every photograph in theory "practice"? You can relate that like music, some "practice sessions" turn out considerably better than others.

[Vaughn]

I photograph as a way to better See...so this I practice as much as I can (no camera needed).

Vaughn

[Norm Buchanan]

as a fellow musician-turned-shooter, i can relate. i do practice, and like David Goldfarb, it's mostly for lighting. if there's a new technique i'm trying to figure out, then the wife or kids often get subjected to living room portraiture.

the difference between music and photography is that with music, you're often performing the same piece of music over and over, and have formal performances that have to go right the first time. with photography, every shot that you throw away was 'practice'. every shot you keep is the performance. so there's less of a need for formal practice in this medium. that said, it can still be beneficial!

Well I played a lot of jazz so I'm not sure I ever played the same piece twice ;), even in practice. In music I would spend a lot of time making sure I had the repertoire of techniques to get the creative idea on tape when I needed to. I guess with photography that is what I am after too. LF portraiture seems to be a world of it's own and practice is involving tons of film, and it isn't like you can practice the techniques with digital. I want to be sure that when I come up with an idea I'll be able to execute it as I picture it without screwing around too much. I always have this fear of wasting a model's time trying to achieve what I am after due to technical buffoonery and general incompetence. After all, photographing someone is really a performance of sorts.

I must say LF practice is expensive though. I have broken a guitar here and there over the years due to accidents, and stupid stunts a la "Spinal Tap", but I sense LF photography will cost much more than a few guitars in the long run!

[Norm Buchanan]

Isn't every photograph in theory "practice"? You can relate that like music, some "practice sessions" turn out considerably better than others.

It depends. If you have an unlimited time to execute your vision then yes, however I can imagine situations where you need to perform rather than practice: a landscape with dynamic lighting or a model you are paying x dollars/hr. In both of these cases I would think having some prowess technically and visually will pay off huge. I suppose one could argue that every session is practice for a later session, but I chalk that up as experience rather than practice. Of course this can become an exercise in semantics.

[Bruce Watson]

I photograph as a way to better See...so this I practice as much as I can (no camera needed).

Vaughn

Yes, exactly. I "photograph" (that is, practice seeing) all the time. When I see something particularly compelling I return with the camera to record it. But I have to see it first which is why I'm always composing, framing, checking where the sun is,... camera or no.

Haven't driven my wife over the edge yet, but every once in a while she does give me that "look of concern" that lets me know that she's wondering about my sanity. I haven't told her yet that I wonder about it too! ;)

[Amund BLix Aaeng]

I find if I haven`t photographed for a while, I need a few days to get back into it again. I just started shooting again after a month break and have given the trash bin a workout the last few days...

[Gordon Moat]

I should probably practice more often, since it can be good to give yourself concepts and visual problems. At times I get into this mood of only grabbing a camera when someone is paying me . . . which is not really a good thing.

I do consciously think about imaging on a constant basis. Either I am looking at the work of others, or I have a little pocket viewfinder that helps me frame a scene. Then other times it is just a sketchbook, which keeps my drawing and composition skills up.

I am finding lately that I need to assign myself more portfolio work, specifically more landscape biased work (urban, sea, roads, et al). Sometimes doing too much of the same style gets into a groove, while other times it seems stifling. So making yourself take more shoots in a different direction can improve how you express your vision.Practice, practice, practice.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat Photography (http://www.gordonmoat.com)

[jnantz]

i expose film every day ( or try to )
but i also just look around me and notice things

[Capocheny]

Hi Norm,

Yes... EVERY time I go out to shoot. :)

As they say, "practice makes perfect."

Every time you set the camera up, it's teaching you to go through a series of steps in preparation for the tripping of the shutter. The more often you go through these steps the more it becomes "second nature."

Cheers

[Jim Galli]

Yes, I practice continually with new "old" lenses, new cameras, new materials, new ideas. Wade through my website and you'll see what I'm talking about. In the end, my "practice" becomes my body of work though. I don't waste my time on a brick wall, I try to end up with something marginally interesting.

I started out in 4X5 with a guy years ago who calculated to the penny that by the 40th sheet he would be a proficient artist able to sell his work for $$. I took a very different path. I told myself that a large dumpster would be full by the time I got to that place and proceeded to burn up a LOT of materials. The problem is the damn dumpster never gets past half.... Perhaps I'm closer to the goal than my friend though.

[Sylvester Graham]

For every picture I take, I probably take about 500 imaginary ones... often from the comfort of my own home.

[Charles Carstensen]

Why do they call a medical doctors' business a practice? Same thing with photography. I am always learning and practicing every time I consciously create a photograph. Some day I hope to get it right. Sometimes it is the unconscious images that are the best.

[David_Senesac]

Curious question. With large format if one does not yet have the skill to use their equipment consistently, there is certainly quite a lot to practice before going out into the heat of the battle. For instance changing film in a film bag or performing each step for shooting in a consistent sequence. Instead of practicing with my equipment, because each sheet of 4x5 film is so pricy to buy and process, when I began using my view camera more, I rather wrote out exacting procedures for everything I needed to do. Thus did not need to practice much but rather follow process until such became behavior. Each spring when I return to shooting in the field again, I may re-read those processes just to make sure I don't screw up.

Depending on the nature of one's work, style at doing so, and objectives, I can imagine the value of practice might vary considerably. For instance with architectural or portraiture subjects, practicing might have some value. And you are obviously talking about composing images and not practicing using one's gear technically. I doubt very many outdoor landscape and nature photographers, even those shooting small format specifically ever go out merely to practice locating subjects or composition. Both are certainly skills that take experience and knowledge however better to go out and capture images that are worth aiming the camera at because subject choice with landscape and nature is what separates the so so masses from those with more talent. In other words if one practices shooting mediocre subjects merely for practice, how will that help a photographer when they are out exploring about an area with great subjects?

For a large format photographer that has not yet developed good aesthetic skills, one could go out with a little compact digital camera and efficiently and cheaply practice with that since composition and subject locating do not require actually using specific formats. The key thing is being able to review, analyze, and evaluate what one has captured later on. Years ago that used to be projecting a bunch of slides up on a screen several times over a period of weeks after a field session. Each time critically methodically and systematically reviewing what one had captured. Then maybe printing the better ones out and looking critically at them for months. However the unskilled evaluating their own work are not likely to improve beyond a modest level. Thus web image critique forums today can be somewhat valuable though there is much mediocre work that is merely praised for the sake of stroking. At a certain point one could improve far more by watching a talented photographer go about their work while they explain what and why they are doing so. Also listening to a talented photographers critique images of those not in attendance is likely to be a learning revelation with more value than any additional amount of practice in the field.

Then again my comments are narrowly posed against what I personally am involved in which is landscapes and nature and not areas like portraiture. ...David

[Dick Hilker]

Though I've been using other formats for many years, as a newcomer to LF I find it very helpful to go through the setting up routine and practice viewing the world upside down, along with experiencing the effects of the movements that were never before available to me. In the past, previzualization never included plane of focus or other adjustments to the image, so I now find myself doing the "one-eyed squint" with those added factors thrown in -- lots more fun!