True; nothing left but the dregs.Originally Posted by Drew Wiley
True; nothing left but the dregs.
I think the truth of the matter is that if you go hunting for subjects in new, unfamiliar locations, the only weapon you bring to the experience - the only one that matters - is your own unique way of seeing whats in front of you. If you go to the west coast and hit the beach/dunes, etc., sure enough you will see the same scenes thousands of others have made photos of. The trick (if you can call it that) is to see something in a scene/place that nobody but you has seen.
Many of the photos I have made in the past five years were made within 3 minutes walk of my front door. If I can't find something to make a photograph of/with within walking distance of home, then I'm just not trying hard enough and I can only pin the blame on the failure of imagination. If you come to Oregon expecting to be confronted with nothing but the same visions thousands have seen already, then you're asking yourself the wrong questions entirely.
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Seems I hit a nerve. The OP asked opinions, I gave one. Right or wrong . . to you, it's exactly that, one valid opinion. The OP and the rest of you can take it or leave it. But it's silly to get worked up about it.
Oh gosh. Once I basically commuted the Gorge while staying a week at my in-laws, each day hiking a different side canyon. And each afternoon I stopped at Latourelle Falls gauging the light, water spray, and potential tripod positions. It doesn't get tour buses like Multnomah Falls, but does have its own parking lot; and no doubt thousand of pictures a year are taken of it. I took exactly one shot later that week with the 8X10. It doesn't look like any other rendition of that spot I've ever seen, and frankly, looks like a classic in print version. That's a big long Gorge, and I be there again, no doubt.
Not at all, Jim! My "rebuttal" wasn't intended to suggest that I thought you were wrong, because you're not wrong, exactly. I've been looking at the hundreds of photos of a certain view of Boardman State Park at the coast, and I think to myself "well, its been done thousands of times, but not by ME, so there's always the chance I will see something different or bring a new treatment to the scene", and I truly believe that. I still want to go to Boardman this year and make some photos. (preferably wet plate collodion, which will help me craft my own interpretation of it) I don't think people should avoid popular vistas just because they've been done by hoards of people. Quite the opposite; I consider it a personal challenge to see something nobody else saw when I go to such places.
So, no - I'm not all worked up about what you said. I understand completely why you would want to warn someone to steer clear of the "same old landscapes", because getting something truly unique in such places is going to be difficult. I think its fair to say that, but I don't happen to share that approach to photographing iconic views. You can be sure that when/if I get a chance to photograph a certain vista at Yosemite that I'm going to do it and (hopefully) enjoy every aspect of the process! :-)
Having recently moved to this area I have not explored as much as I will. I went to Fort Stevens and shot with the 8x10. A couple of image I really like but when I showed it to the locals they all said "Oh the steps... Ft. Stevens!" Everyone has done that one.... so now I'm the only one with a carbon print of it which they said it does have a different look. I like it and that is all that matters to me. Plus, my steps are backwards!
Many good comments here. For my money, if I wanted to do something that hasn't been done _as often_ I would head east.
This was part of a discussion at my monthly critique meeting, and is relevant to this discussion as well. The consensus was that we can start with the "obvious" (iconic) image (which is still one which we ourselves have not yet made), but remember that it is just a starting point. We should then look for the less iconic, more personal images in the same place. It would be almost self-defeating to not take "the" vista in Yosemite, or "the" church in Taos, or "the" White Castle at Canyon de Chelly, but it would be equally self-defeating to take only that image and then put the camera back in its case. So while just about every scenic area in the Portland vicinity has already been "immortalized," that is no reason not to go there and take both the obvious and then the less-obvious photos.
Well said.
Last spring I went to Silver Falls because it’s fairly close to home, and I took my Autocord to test the new Bergger Pancro 400. This is a location that is very difficult to photograph without taking the same photos everyone else has taken, but I prefer to think there’s always something else to be seen, if only I make an effort. Ive has several people say to me that this photo of the main falls is unlike what most people come away with. I’d like to think it’s because I made the effort to try to see it in ways others have not, and I felt pushed to do that precisely because there are millions of photos of it that all look similar.
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