Not "feeling it": Diagnosis anyone?

[Daniel Stone]

hey all,

I'm kinda feeling "in a rut" right now in terms of not producing good work/printing/etc...

Having attempted to chase the "golden bullet" the last few months/years prior to this summer, I've come to realize that its NOT the equipment that makes a photograph, but rather, the subject and the photographers vision that makes the photographs. Yes, materials(film, paper, etc) help, but in the end, the materials are just a medium to a final product of the photographer's vision.

But for some reason, I'm not feeling it. I'm brand new to the world of 8x10 photography, and having shot somewhat before heading to Iceland this summer, I got my feet "wet" somewhat before going. However, I don't feel it was enough. I've worked off and on with a 4x5 camera before purchasing a KMV earlier this year for the trip, but using an 8x10 camera really opened my eyes to MAKING a photograph. 4x5 is great, but when I got the 8x10 and set it up for the 1st time, it just felt "different". In good ways and bad, honestly. Still feels different when I set it up, even with the 4x5 reducing back on it.

So far, I've developed about 25sheets of 85~ 8x10 negs(b/w) shot during the trip(6.5 weeks long), but none of them have really delivered "the goods" of what my vision(well, what I saw in my mind) was seeing. I was using a new camera, new technique, new lens, new film stock(never used Efke 100 before this trip), new developing method(trays with DBI like M+P), new developer(HC-110 right now, going to try Pyro-HD, going to order it this week), and hopefully get some Lodima/Amidol-chems in the works too :). New everything I guess, maybe thats the problem.

But somehow, I feel like I'm caught in a death-spiral, and I don't like it. Seeing a few "good" negatives so far has bolstered my self-confidence, but making some prints on Ilford MGIV in dektol, I'm not too flattered by what I'm seeing. Perhaps not having had access to a darkroom for close to a year has affected my technique somewhat :(.

I'm trying to photograph things that interest me, whether graphically, emotionally, or by other means, but for some reason, I'm just not getting it. I'm not going to give up, but I feel a lack of direction in my work.

sorry for the random rant, but after spending 5hrs in the darkroom today, attempting to get a 1/2 DECENT print(contact print at that) out of some of these negatives, I left with NOTHING. 40 8x10 sheets now are in the trash...

anyone have any ideas on ways to get myself out of this? And any advice to a young photographer, who doesn't want to leave the medium, I just love it too much! But if I'm not producing anything that's worthwhile(even to me), what's the point of doing it?

thanks, and blessings!

-Daniel Stone

[patrickjames]

It sounds to me like you are enamored with the processes and equipment when you should be concentrating on the images. You need to figure out what you don't like about them. Why can't you make a good print? Are your negatives poorly developed or exposed? There is nothing wrong with the materials you are using, but by changing over and over again you will never learn to use them or what to expect from them. That should be your first step. Learn.

[Bruce Barlow]

In my experience, learning and development come in leaps. You're on a plateau right now, and it feels static. It's easy, and natural, to feel frustrated.

Best advice, hard to take: relax and enjoy the journey. Some specific suggestions.

Go loosen up - take a 35mm or - aargh - point-and-shoot digital to a playground and spend the afternoon photographing young children at play. Will you get keepers? Precisely not the point. The children will help you free up what we've called photographic constipation, that "stuck" feeling.

Make one, and only one, 8x10 picture a day for a month. Anything, any time. Do your best with each one. Line up the proofs and look at them, hard. You'll learn a lot.

Make every exposure an experiment - what do you need to know from this exposure? that way, you get results that you wanted (success) or results other than what you wanted (learning), but you never fail. Feeling failure is the enemy of progress.

Think hard about what you want to photograph, and why. Define a project that explores that subject and attitude towards it, with the key part of the project being a clear idea of a modest end-point (such as "5 finished, mounted prints"). Include objectives about things you want to learn ("I want to learn to print mid-tones more expressively").

Look at all your proofs and try to understand why they're unsatisfying: unclear subject? inadequate craft? too little emotional zing? It's one or more of the three, most likely the last (at least that's my experience with my own work). Look hard and see if you can see how each might have been better, stronger.

Just some thoughts, but overall, I think three months from now you will have had a breakthrough and your work, and attitude towards it, will have made a giant leap.

Good luck, and please keep us posted on how you're doing.

[John Bowen]

If you learned nothing else from M&P it should be:

1 film
1 film developer
1 paper (OK maybe two Azo & Lodima)
1 paper developer


After MUCH research on the Azo forum, I settled on:
TMY
Pyrocat HD
Azo/Lodima
Amidol

Now that all that crap is out of the way, I can focus on making photographs. My "Seeing" still needs work, but I know I'm using materials that are capable of delivering whatever my "Vision" might require.

I found using an 8x10 most liberating. You can actually "SEE" what's going on with the GG. I was fortunate. When I first started working with an 8x10, the late Ted Harris (may he RIP) took one look at my GG and immediately told me to get a different screen. Mine looked rather dark to Ted. I purchased a Satin Snow (no longer made) and it made a big difference.

Most of us would say our success rate is something like 5%. So if you "only" made 85 negatives, don't expect more than 4 of them to result in worthwhile prints.

Yeah, new everything never helps. Most photographers would tell you to NEVER take "new" (ie untested) stuff on an important trip. Sounds like you did more than break that rule.

I presume you are spending more time on your photography then I can spend on mine, but it took me nearly a year and 500 sheets of Azo (in a few developers including Dektol...Yuck with Azo) and shooting 100 8x10 Tri-X/HC-110 negatives (nope, those didn't work for me).

Ask Michael if he could recommend somone in your area, that might take a look at your negatives/prints and give some guidance. Absent that, I'd suggest you pack up a few of your negatives and related prints and ship them to Michael. Nothing like learning from someone who "can hang 'em on the wall."

Good luck and keep at it. No one ever said this photography stuff was ever easy.

Best,

PS Bruce was posting at the same time as me. He offers very good advice....follow it!

[JamesFromSydney]

It doesn't sound unusual -- you're on a huge learning curve with the new camera & techniques. I got extremely discouraged early this year after months of failed attempts at b&w landscape (6x6 and 4x5), went off and did something else for a while, and am now coming back to it with a better understanding of what was going wrong. It seems silly now to me that I was expecting such great results so quickly.

I suspect you're at a point where many people tend to throw in the towel. Your vision or ambition is exceeding your current level of skill, which is actually a good sign!

I came from a music composition background, and this exact same thing happens there, too. You have people with talent who are dismayed at their current lack of progress, and people with no talent who think they're inherently great artists and have no such concerns.

The key is to not give up. Work through it. Do a side project or take a break. Get some mentoring (not easy these days, alas).

I think getting these kinds of blocks usually means that you're about to make some kind of real progress, although it may not come easily (what does?)

Try and visit galleries, of both photography and general art -- probably one of the best uses of time for any artist.

[JamesFromSydney]

Also, perhaps post some images on this forum for critique ? It can be daunting -- I've put several of my shots up on a flickr critique thread for street photos. It was not a pleasant experience, but very important.

(And yes, I think street photography is somewhat like landscape in that you work with a scene you discover in front of you, but much more quickly. It's great cross-training).

[Tobias Key]

Have you considered scanning some more promising negatives and working on them in photoshop? That might be a more productive way to work on your negatives at first as at least you won't feel the pain of wasting paper and chemicals. Use trial and error (not to mention the undo button) to get close to what you want and then translate that back to the wet darkroom. It took me six months to get used to and be as proficient as I wanted to be, shooting medium format from 35mm back in my twenties. Changing format is often a much bigger challenge than you might imagine, and takes perseverance and patience

[Jim Cole]

After 5 good years as a producing landscape photographer, I hit the slump. Nothing inspired me anymore. I went 18 months producing only a couple of sheets of film, neither of which was any good. For a while, I didn't care. However, since photography had become my living, I had to get my mojo back.

I switched to B&W film and suddenly it was a new world. As soon as I could develop a sheet of 4x5 film correctly, I outlined my first project based on similar recommendations for getting out of a rut on this forum. I had always shot willy-nilly, a trip here, a trip there and never really shot close to home. The project kept me focused and I worked on it for almost a year. It made me look at things completely differently. I no longer had a need to travel to get inspired.

After finishing the project, I revisited places close to home and shot in B&W instead of color. I became enamored of some of the great still-life photos on one of the threads here and decided that I really wanted to tackle a completely new style of shooting. I had always thought that still-life photographs were boring, although the occasional image would grab me. Once I started understanding, I started to appreciate. I got great help here on this forum and started making some nice images.

I graduated to an 8x10 and love the feeling of shooting with it. I am on a steep learning curve again, but that keeps me involved. I am studying the pictorialist photographers to see if any inspiration lies there. I am on a quest to finally find my own style of photography after ten years of shooting. It may take another ten, but I will get there eventually.

Anyway, my advice is to change it up, shoot something new or in a new way. Looking just at all the fine photography on this site is inspirational. Try something that is completely outside your comfort zone. Most of all, just keep shooting.

[David Aimone]

As a musician as well, I find that I oscillate between the two arts. A couple of years ago, I was very frustrated with my musical productivity. Since then, I've been focused on photographs. I still tinker on keyboards and guitar, but haven't done <anything> "serious" since then.

All the musical instruments and recording gear is still on one side of my studio, ready to go. I suspect the next time I get back into it will be when I hit a major photographic "rut". For the minor ruts, I'll take Bruce's advice and enjoy the process and experiment. So far, there's been enough with large format and film to keep me very energized for some time.

But the place you are right now is part of the process. How you respond determines where you go next. Make plans, but accept each step/moment—one at a time—and go with it...

FWIW

[Ben Syverson]

"Inspiration is for amateurs."
- Chuck Close

[Bruce Barlow]

"Beauty is optimism made visible"
- Tillman Crane

[evan clarke]

You should hang these prints up, live with them and decide what is wrong. Don't be rash, sometimes you photograph on trips because you're on a trip trips, not because of great subject matter and astounding light...EC

[Merg Ross]

Daniel, you sound depressed, don't be. I spent most of Saturday processing film and printing; the results, negatives and prints, departed with the morning trash. You can't always hit a home run.

Some random thoughts: 8x10 cameras, and related technique, take time to master, and prevent total visual freedom, in my opinion. The whole process should start with your vision and end with your vision, without any technical interference. Sure, you need the technique to present your vision, but it should not become an end in itself.

So,let me ask about your vision. Have you, in past years, been excited with your photographs, technique aside? Do you have a portfolio of favorites? Most likely yes. Look at them, and look at your work from Iceland. What is missing in the recent work; spontaneity, composition, emotion?

You have come a long way in a short time; don't throw in the towel, but take a break from the 8x10 and return to it later. As suggested, spend time at museums, study sculpture and painting, and then return to your photography. If you truly have the passion, you will not be absent long.

Perhaps, in those remaining 8x10's from Iceland you will have some winners!

Merg

[Daniel Stone]

good morning everyone!

thanks for all the helpful hints, I was talking with a friend last night, and he recommended what many of you have just have. Take a break. For a while. So, I think that I might do just that.

I'm in need of work(not photographic work) anyhow, so this might give me a few months to get my mind off of photographing(at least in LF terms).

John Bowen: again, mucho appreciado man! Your insight and candidness sure helps :).

Merg Ross: thanks, its great to hear that even the "masters" have bad days too ;). I hope another one doesn't come for a LOOOOOONG time for you. Composition: my previous work from other formats hasn't really excited me all that much. In all honesty, I've been considering trashing the whole lot of my negatives up until this point(except the Iceland ones and a few select others) and just starting fresh.

scanning: I'll try and see if I can get access to a 1/2 decent scanner that can handle 8x10 negs, but it might be kinda hard.

many thanks all!

-Dan

[paulr]

"Inspiration is for amateurs."
- Chuck Close

Just as working while uninspired is for professionals. Which explains why most of the great art produced in photography over the last 180 or so years has come either from amateurs or from pros on their days off ...

So I'll happily stay amateur, and will never dismiss the question of inspiration. When it dries up, it's like the world stops turning.

The OP has gotten a lot of good advice on how to deal with it; I'll reiterate and mix it up a bit:

take a step back, re-evaluate what you're interested in exploring; try something a little different (another type of photography) or radically different (join a punk band); look at a lot of contemporary painting; read a lot of contemporary fiction or poetry; give yourself contrived and ridiculous assignments; try a bigger/slower or faster/smaller camera; start exercising regularly and furiously; take a break and stop thinking about it for a while.

For most people inspiration comes in cycles with dry spells. It's natural. It's also natural to feel lost during the down time, and to want to get out of it as soon as possible. For me the cycle has sometimes been about other interests holding sway ... photography is only one of my creative pursuits, and it serves me in different ways from the others. I can't pick and choose which one's going to best fit my life at any particular time. There have also been times when I felt blocked because I wouldn't acknowledge that I was done with a project ... I'd said all I had to say (whether or not I'd said enough or said it well) and it was time to move on. This can be a scary prospect, especially if you've become invested in the work, but I've learned to face up to it.

[jon.oman]

I'm not in a rut I just have too many things that interfere with my pursuit of photography.

[Brian C. Miller]

I looked up the Chuck Close quote, and I like the full quote:


“Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get the work done. If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lighting to strike you in the brain, you’re not going to make an awful lot of work.”

Some of my best stuff has been done when during Non Impediti Ratione Cogitationis (http://www.shamelesscommerce.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=LATINMUG09) mode. Just wandering along, stopping and photographing. It's only after I had made contact sheets and shown them to somebody else that something stood out.

Photography can be hit and miss, but if you don't swing, then you won't hit.

[Kuzano]

Is it a given that everybody improves as the format gets bigger? I doubt it. Perhaps 4X5 is where you see best. There are plenty of people out there producing high quality bodies of work with 35mm, Medium Format, and even digital.

Where is the proof that if any of these photographers moved up one level, their vision would produce higher quality work, and their work become more desirable?

I think not. If that were the case, then wouldn't we all be lugging around and shooting 20x24, or even a much larger image capture device mounted on a trailer behind our cars?

Go back to the 4X5 for a few weeks and see if you haven't just exceeded your proven niche. Nothing is inherently wrong with the work produced by many photographers with 4X5.

[David Karp]

Keep swinging. You are in a slump. Plus, you changed bats. You might like your old bat better, or you might not.

Nobody avoids a slump. You just have to play through it. A break is OK, but you have to make photos to make photos that satisfy you.

[Ben Syverson]

So I'll happily stay amateur, and will never dismiss the question of inspiration. When it dries up, it's like the world stops turning.
That's the problem -- when the inspiration "dries up," the world DOES stop turning for a lot of people, and they develop complete paralysis. Some never make art again. The myth of true love at first sight found in romantic comedies is not enough to sustain a long marriage, and the myth of "inspiration" is not enough to sustain an artistic career.

The point of the Chuck Close quote is that you don't need to wake up every morning completely inspired and ready to make a completely fresh masterpiece. Every artist or photographer you admire got to where they are by getting up in the morning and doing their routine. Most days, it probably felt pointless to them. But if you're disciplined, you will wind up with an incredible body of work.

I had a teacher in school who said she made one new piece every day when she was in grad school. You better believe there were days when it felt sisyphean. But she went in as a good artist, and came out a great artist with first-class gallery representation (and an MFA as a token).

[paulr]

That's the problem -- when the inspiration "dries up," the world DOES stop turning for a lot of people, and they develop complete paralysis.

I get it, and I'm not dismissing Klose's point. And I'm certainly not dismissing Klose. I hope the rest of my post made it clear that I'm not advocating passively going to sleep when inspiration evaporates. You gotta chase it, woo it, whatever.

As a pro, though, you have to be able to work whether you're inspired or not. I know this from many unhappy mornings working as a designer. I'm not inspired; the client needs something good by lunchtime. And the client doesn't care how I'm feeling.

That's how the world goes on ... when forced. It's rarely where my better work comes from.

[speedfreak]

I often feel like I have a relationship with photography. It is my main creative outlet and like any relationship it has it's ups and downs. I knew I loved LF when I first started shooting 4x5. After two years or so of camera roulette including exploring 8x10 for a brief stint (the cost and burden of the gear, I feel, got in the way of my creative "flow") I finally have a setup that I can forget about. Sure, frustration still rises up, because LF can be a pain in the a$$, but at the same time the process that I go through when out photographing connects me to the world like nothing else and serves to put me in a very "zen" state of mind.

Daniel, I can fully understand your statement about not having a focus, and have felt that if I only had a direction , inspiration will come. I've realized that, for me, having that single-mindedness when it comes to subject matter only served to reinforce the creative block that I had. Instead, I make images of things as they strike me. Of course, putting yourself in a position to be out when the light is right, or WILL be right helps, but making an image in "bad light" also takes a lot of creativity and can be rewarding just the same. I go on walks, drives, or ride a bike and if something strikes me I explore it, look at it from many angles and study it's relationship with it's surroundings. I'm fascinated by the most mundane stuff and most times I don't have a camera, but the exercise of seeing and exploring remains the same, and helps when I do have a camera with me.

Come on buddy, you can do it, pick yourself up by the boot straps and go explore the fascinating world all around you!

[sun of sand]

40 8x10 sheets now are in the trash...
probably the best thing for you/anyone

i aspire to that
i dont print much nd when i do its a near basic proof print
i have some negatives i havent even looked at

but nobody is born good
you get good by not wanting to suck anymore
thats hard work

40 print sin the trash sounds like hard work so i believe youre on the right track
that said it could be 5 years from now before you feel good

[Steve M Hostetter]

REO speedwagon, keep pushin:)

[sun of sand]

I get it, and I'm not dismissing Klose's point. And I'm certainly not dismissing Klose. I hope the rest of my post made it clear that I'm not advocating passively going to sleep when inspiration evaporates. You gotta chase it, woo it, whatever.

As a pro, though, you have to be able to work whether you're inspired or not. I know this from many unhappy mornings working as a designer. I'm not inspired; the client needs something good by lunchtime. And the client doesn't care how I'm feeling.

That's how the world goes on ... when forced. It's rarely where my better work comes from.

I'd say that if a customer needs something good by lunchtime theyre not looking for great
looking for good
if you are a professional whatever you should be able to provide some good enough game even when your head isnt in it

but that doesn't mean its going to be a masterpiece
more often than not it'll be a standard


not the same thing imo

[Ben Syverson]

but that doesn't mean its going to be a masterpiece
more often than not it'll be a standard
In my experience, most clients can't tell the difference between "good" and "awful," let alone "good" and "great."

[Stephen Willard]

I have just started reading the book "The Tao of Photography - Seeing Beyond Seeing" by Philippe L. Gross and S.I. Shapiro. The book applies classic Asian psychologies of the mind, especially the Taoist philosophy of the Chuang-tzu, to illuminate both the art of seeing and the art of living as a path to enhancing the art of creative photography. So far I am enjoying it, and I find it relative and applicable to my own photographic art.

On another note, I am so visionary in my work that it borders on being compulsive. Everything I do from the types of cameras, the film, and the processes I employ to produce the final print are designed to move me closer to my vision. As a generalization, I find all modern day photographic methods insufficient for my needs to achieve my vision. In fact, I dare say that my entire body of work is a testament to my failure to realize my vision simply because I am unable to fully replicate the artistic experience with current materials and equipment. This frustration has lead me to develop entirely new methods and technologies in my darkroom and in the field as a means of moving closer to my vision.

Everything about my photography is vision driven. If I should stumble on a composition that is striking and worthy but not applicable to my vision, then the composition becomes a distraction, and I will NOT invest the time to photograph it. I simply move on.

A person without vision to guide his camera and art becomes rudderless. His work will be flat and dull, and it will lack purpose no matter what equipment and methods you employ. If this is you, then take the time to develop your artistic vision. For me, it was one of the hardest things I have ever done, and it took me years to produce a clear simple statement of my vision. I cannot tell you how many books I have read, how many heated discussions I have had on this website, the number of people I have talked with, and the amount of time I spent pondering my art before I could finally articulate my vision.

Once you have vision then you have purpose, meaning, and direction. The feeling of being visionary in your art is profound. You know what you have to do, and you know when you trip the shutter that you have done it. Everything becomes clearer and simpler. Your compositions will become focused and clear not only to you, but to those who will view it. Your images will become crisp and brilliant, and people will pay good money to take ownership of them.

If your vision is distinctive and unique then your resulting body of work will be distinctive and unique. If your vision mimics other artists vision, then your work will also mimic their work as well. In either case, what ever vision you choose to embrace, make sure that it feels right for you, and when that happens, then the resulting joy that you will receive from your art will be amazing:)

Hope this helps....

[jnantz]

hi daniel

good luck getting out of your slump / rut.
sometimes just the whole new camera, new everything
makes you focus on the machines instead of the other stuff.
the more you use your camera and the more you get used to using it
maybe you will be in your comfort zone again and will be able to
pull the images out of the ether that you hope for.
i would keep using the 8x10 ( with or without the 4x5 back ) so it becomes
more second nature for you. you don't really need to use film all the time
paper negatives are cheap and easy and sometimes can be your friend ...

have fun ..
john

[Brian C. Miller]

On another note, I am so visionary in my work that it borders on being compulsive. Everything I do from the types of cameras, the film, and the processes I employ to produce the final print are designed to move me closer to my vision. As a generalization, I find all modern day photographic methods insufficient for my needs to achieve my vision. In fact, I dare say that my entire body of work is a testament to my failure to realize my vision simply because I am unable to fully replicate the artistic experience with current materials and equipment. This frustration has lead me to develop entirely new methods and technologies in my darkroom and in the field as a means of moving closer to my vision.

I have repeatedly failed to achieve producing the vision of what got me into photography: moonlight.

I never cared about photography until, while driving home on a brightly moonlit night, I became fascinated with what I saw. I have found that there is a significant difference between "night" and "moonlight" photography. The environment and the film are equally important. When Fuji had 10/1000, I found that the film had no color shift, and that resulted in a moonlit scene looking as if it was shot at noon.

Another inspirational zap came when I was walking home with the groceries, and I looked up and saw the moon, in the midst of a pagoda-like lenticular cloud formation. Of course I didn't have a camera with me, but that inspired me to try and photograph the moon and surrounding clounds. Difficult? You betcha! I have not yet produced a picture like I want.

So I keep failing and I keep trying.

(I can't find the exact demotivator for this, so here's a few that are close enough)
Failure: When your best just isn't good enough.
Futility: You'll always miss 100% of the shots you don't take, and, statistically speaking, 99% of the shots you do.
Losing: If at first you don't succeed, failure may be your style.
(Demotivators (http://www.despair.com/viewall.html))

[Ben Syverson]

It sounds like you have a white whale. My advice is to enjoy the journey and process! You'll get the shot you want eventually, but by the time you get it, you might realize that some of the shots you took leading up to it were just as good...

[Bruce Schultz]

There's nothing more disappointing than returning from a big trip and the images don't match expectations. Part of the image-making is being in the moment at the site where you saw what you wanted to capture.

I suggest you put those images away, don't toss them. Then then look at them again in a couple of months, or longer. I've done this several times and often what bothered me about some of the pictures originally had become a faint memory of disappointment. I've often had quibbles about the smallest, insignificant details.

Also, show them to someone else and get their perspectives.

As for being in a rut, don't expect that once you find your way out of the fog, you'll always be immune from a re-infection.

[Heroique]

Whining for inspiration is as old as Western literature … and I mean its first lines:

“The Muses once taught Hesiod to sing/Sweet songs…” [Theogony]
“Sing Goddess, the rage of Peleus’ son, Achilles…” [Iliad]
“Sing to me of the man, Muse, the man of twists and turns…” [Odyssey]

Sheesh! – You’d think they’d have a little more self-confidence. Think of what they might have accomplished. ;)

Maybe read more Eastern literature – like Stephen in post #27.

[coroner12]

Plateaus suck. George Leonard writes in his brilliant book, "Mastery" that we spend most of our time on the plateau and the successful person learns to work through it or even enjoy his time on it. I highly recommend taking a look at this work (its a short read). See you on the other side.

[Daniel Stone]

thanks coroner12,

I'll look into that. A trip to Borders anyhow is in the works this afternoon, 40% off coupons are now in effect :). See you on the other side :)

bruce: I'll do that. I'll just file em away for a 6mo look-see or so. After talking with a great friend last night, I think that a 2 weeks stint using his Hasselblad might help to liven things up. Maybe have a "square" perspective on the world(at least photographically) can change things for the better. thanks!

-Dan

[Merg Ross]

.............I think that a 2 weeks stint using his Hasselblad might help to liven things up. Maybe have a "square" perspective on the world(at least photographically) can change things for the better. thanks!

-Dan

Excellent idea. I was hinting at that in my comment regarding the 8x10. You need not limit yourself to a "square" perspective; the ease of use of the 120 format, and choice of lenses, will enhance your vision. You will begin to see things that you would not have seen while using the larger camera. I guarantee it.

Have fun, and report back.

[tgtaylor]

So far, I've developed about 25sheets of 85~ 8x10 negs(b/w) shot during the trip(6.5 weeks long), but none of them have really delivered "the goods" of what my vision(well, what I saw in my mind) was seeing.

I can relate to that.

One instance that I will always remember is coming down the south side of Mather Pass in the Sierra Nevada late one afternoon and seeing the most fantastic landscape that up to that point I had ever seen. The lighting and shadows on the landscape were absolutely perfect. So stupid me I took only one frame thinking I had captured it only to be bitterly disappoionted when I got it back from the lab.

Now I make sure and shoot two or more.

Thomas

[Brian Ellis]

I haven't read the whole thread, if I'm repeating what others have said my apologies. But with respect to photographs from a recent trip not meeting your expectations, set the contact sheets or proofs aside for a few years, then look at them again. It's surprising how photographs sometimes improve over the years, after you've forgotten whatever it was you expected and can just look at them as photographs.

[Preston]

It's surprising how photographs sometimes improve over the years, after you've forgotten whatever it was you expected and can just look at them as photographs.


I call this 'gurgle time'. Over time we tend to lose some of our emotional attachment to images, allowing us to be more objective in our appraisal of their qualities.

--P

[Drew Wiley]

I really like to mix things up by shooting 8x10 one weekend, then 35mm handheld
the next. Or in the darkroom, one week, big prints from large format, and the next
session relatively tiny 5x7's, or switching from black and white to color printing.
For some reason, this seems to keep my creativity fresh.

[Bill_1856]

There's nothing magic about 8x10. If it doesn't work for you, try what you're good at. Photography is supposed to be a pleasure not a core.

[Merg Ross]

..... with respect to photographs from a recent trip not meeting your expectations, set the contact sheets or proofs aside for a few years, then look at them again.

This is good advice. You may dismiss images today, that actually portend a growth in your vision.

[Laura_Campbell]

It's surprising how photographs sometimes improve over the years, after you've forgotten whatever it was you expected and can just look at them as photographs.


I call this 'gurgle time'. Over time we tend to lose some of our emotional attachment to images, allowing us to be more objective in our appraisal of their qualities.

--P

This is kind of in a similar vein to what I was thinking about earlier today. In my work, the photographs I really enjoy the most are the ones I had no attachment to, in terms of their outcome, while photographing them. I was excited enough about what I was seeing to take the time to set up the camera, and photograph, but once I released the shutter, the attachment to how they turned out was left behind and out of the equation. Since I can be overly critical of myself, letting go of expectations while in the field photographing was the best way for me to enjoy the process wherever it took me.