Photography combines the creative with the technical. That was true with film and now with digital. This is one reason I enjoy photography and how it can blend both together so well when creating an image. While it may seem that one prevails over the other more in some photographs, I find that upon deeper examination that it becomes apparent both are always present, one could not exist alone without the other although the weight of each can shift and predominate depending on how an image is examined. This goes beyond photography and into some age-old art vs. science dichotomous type of discussions. One of the favorite books I read in my youth and again more recently, decades later is “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An inquiry into Values” by Robert M. Pirsig. Any discussion about the creative and technical brings thoughts of that book to mind without fail. When I shoot and during post-processing images, it comes to mind when I seem to get bogged down and lose focus. It is when that divide between the creative and technical disappears that I seem to come forth with some of my best images.
Category: Photography
Photography as Universal Communication
The reasons I love photography are many, but one in particular is how a great photograph can be a form of universal communication with the ability to transcend the spoken word. It is one that requires no narrative and translation. It stimulates emotions and resonates deeply without verbalization. The subject matter of the image may have been tediously crafted or spontaneous and unplanned. Regardless of what came before and after the image was captured, what makes it great for me is that it moves us in an essential, human way and leaves something eternal behind that cannot be forgotten.
Visual Communications and Lifelong Learning
In 2011, I returned to college after many years away to resume my education, this time in the area of photography. What followed was an education through a number of courses in a Visual Communications program at Brookhaven College that expanded my current level of knowledge beyond photography and digital imaging into Web Design, WordPress and Illustration as well as other areas of learning. Since completing those college courses, I continued my Visual Communication education through various courses offered through Lynda.com and CreativeLive, both of which provide excellent and well structured online courses in Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, and WordPress, just to name a few. Lifelong learning is vital to my well being and is something I enjoy immensely.