A Lawyer friend introduced me to this phrase. I added the 'crummy photos' part.
When looking for subjects in the landscape, I tend to think of how a photo will look when its printed and if it will "look" like I've been accustomed to how a landscape photo should look. Even if I do all the technical stuff 'right' I end up with a crummy photo (or worse, a 'well done' crummy photo!) My dissonance. I got what I was looking for (but I wasn't looking at what I was truly seeing, only that which I had been expecting to 'see' which at best is predictable (and crummy)
I find its far more rewarding to forget about the print and forget about all the other landscapes I've seen and enjoyed, and deal with whats going on in 'real time,' selecting my subject based on what I'm seeing, not my own desire to "capture" an image that for all purposes might look like it would be a good magazine cover, poster, or post card but in truth will sit in my filling cabinet until the day comes when my heirs will chuck it into a dumpster.
I'm curious as to what others here think. Is Cognitive Dissonance a real problem when it comes to art and developing your own style, or am I being foolish for considering it to be a problem?
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