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 02/09/2005 05:56:06 PM · #51

For one, it gets me out of the house, going to places and seeing things I wouldn't otherwise do. So many things now seem to be "oh, I bet I could get some good photos there!" I've done a lot more hiking, visiting local gardens/landmarks etc in the last year since I picked up a camera. And when I'm there, I appreciate it so much more. I look at the world so intently now, always trying to find the beauty or the interest in even the most "boring" scene.

Second, because like all (or most) people I'm driven to create. Isn't the creation of objects that have no practical purpose for survival, that are just beautiful and for collecting and admiring, isn't that some anthrpologic definition of a human being? Anyway, I'm driven to create beauty and this is a way to do it.

And for someone as left-brained as I am, this might be the only way to do it. I can't draw, or paint, or sculpt to save my life. But I can understand how a camera works. And I can recognize something beautiful in this world, and record it in the way I see it. There's artistry involved of course, but I think photography is probably the easiest artform for those of us who born with a huge amount of natural artistic ability.

And last, it's just cool to look at a photo and know that's it's something original -- that it was a moment of time that has passed and will never come again. And if it weren't for that photo, it would never be seen again.
 02/09/2005 06:04:56 PM · #52
I get most of my pleasure in life from those around me experiencing pleasure. But alas there are two sides to photography...

There is what I shoot for me because I like how it looks, or like how my ideas look in actuality. I love being able to make something out of nature and people that they are not. I love making water blur through an otherwise crisp shot. Or taking a plain shot of some trees and making it emotional.

Then there is what I shoot for 'work'. I love the way people are not sure about themselves or 'hate taking pictures' until they see what I've done. I love it when people get all 'cheesy' over my work. I love being complimented, I love doing something that isn't a universal skill.

I love the hours I can spend with the countless possibilities my camera coupled with some good post processing can create. I love explaining to my wife how I've done things, or listening to her ideas. I love the emotion involved in entering them into contests.

I love how sometimes I see what I want to shoot, and others I have to look,,, real hard. It's yin and yang really. I think it's hard to give one reason, or to say that all reasons are a plus. Sometimes I hate my camera and want to smash it into a billion pieces.. But generally that's when some of my 'best' work is realized.

Joe

Message edited by author 2005-02-09 18:05:50.
 02/09/2005 06:06:13 PM · #53
Originally posted by SDW65:
I have been sick now for 5 years and the doctors can’t seem to put a grip on exactly is wrong other than having bad back and possible nerve damage(s). Two herniated disk at C4/5 and C5/6 and spinal epidural lipomatosis. As most know with chronic pain over a period of time depression and sometime panic disorders will set in, and they did, even if you are encircled by people that love and sustain you. So one day my doctor asked me what I like to do and I said take pictures. He suggested I take up photography as a pastime because photography could sooth the mind and soul. That was June of last year and I was out of work and had been since December of 2003. Money was very unyielding with only my wife working but she and my children somehow came up with enough money, where there was none, to purchase me a Panasonic FZ1 and I signed up as a registered user to this site. It has helped me in so many ways and I have made several friends here. I finally became a member in November 2004 and do not regret it at all. At first I was obsessed with scores, how people vote, and even complaining about the two. But now I accept the score I receive and I vote the way I see the photograph. I just wish some users would forget about why there picture didn’t do good or vote down pictures because they don’t like dogs, cats, kid pictures, flags, etc. and just enjoy what they are doing. To be a member of this site cost $25.00, your camera may cost $100’s or $1000’s of dollars, but having a place to share your creativity and art at the same time making friends, well that’s priceless; at least for me.
Scott W.


Scott....I am truly and profoundly moved by this.

Your photographs are sympathetic and beautiful naratives of your concern for the misfortune others....you express your pain at the pain of others through your eloquence and artistry.

I've honestly learned a huge amount by seeing the world through your eyes....Keep telling us your stories Scott....we've still a lot to learn.

Bob

02/09/2005 06:09:28 PM · #54
Just added you to my list of favorite photographers. But only because there isn't a place to add you to my list of favorite poets.

Originally posted by zeuszen:
I take pictures because I see them.

02/09/2005 06:18:08 PM · #55
Originally posted by SDW65:
I have been sick now for 5 years and the doctors can’t seem to put a grip on exactly is wrong other than having bad back and possible nerve damage(s). Two herniated disk at C4/5 and C5/6 and spinal epidural lipomatosis. As most know with chronic pain over a period of time depression and sometime panic disorders will set in, and they did, even if you are encircled by people that love and sustain you. So one day my doctor asked me what I like to do and I said take pictures. He suggested I take up photography as a pastime because photography could sooth the mind and soul. That was June of last year and I was out of work and had been since December of 2003. Money was very unyielding with only my wife working but she and my children somehow came up with enough money, where there was none, to purchase me a Panasonic FZ1 and I signed up as a registered user to this site. It has helped me in so many ways and I have made several friends here. I finally became a member in November 2004 and do not regret it at all. At first I was obsessed with scores, how people vote, and even complaining about the two. But now I accept the score I receive and I vote the way I see the photograph. I just wish some users would forget about why there picture didn’t do good or vote down pictures because they don’t like dogs, cats, kid pictures, flags, etc. and just enjoy what they are doing. To be a member of this site cost $25.00, your camera may cost $100’s or $1000’s of dollars, but having a place to share your creativity and art at the same time making friends, well that’s priceless; at least for me.
Scott W.


Your doctor was right :)

My photography basically started with an illness also. It is a great stress reliever; and I also find it soothing for the mind and soul.
02/09/2005 06:29:49 PM · #56
Originally posted by ahaze:
Just added you to my list of favorite photographers. But only because there isn't a place to add you to my list of favorite poets.

Originally posted by zeuszen:
I take pictures because I see them.


Thank you, Andi, for your qualified choice. ;-)

Message edited by author 2005-02-09 19:05:17.
 02/09/2005 06:51:58 PM · #57
Originally posted by zeuszen:
I need to make pictures that have no market value.


I started taking pictures because I was bored, and found a cheap camera to buy, one day.

I continued to take pictures because my friends, whose opinions I respect, said they liked them.

Now I take pictures because I think I might be into something.

One day, I hope to take pictures because I know what that thing is.

I hope the magic lasts that long.

E
 02/09/2005 07:45:46 PM · #58
Originally posted by e301:


One day, I hope to take pictures because I know what that thing is.



Skill...tallent....eloquence....artistry....intelligence....

all of the above

Bob
 02/09/2005 07:56:06 PM · #59
Originally posted by e301:
Originally posted by zeuszen:
I need to make pictures that have no market value.


I started taking pictures because I was bored, and found a cheap camera to buy, one day.

I continued to take pictures because my friends, whose opinions I respect, said they liked them.

Now I take pictures because I think I might be into something.

One day, I hope to take pictures because I know what that thing is.

I hope the magic lasts that long.

E


It may not be an 'it' - it may be an 'is'.
 02/09/2005 08:33:21 PM · #60
There has been talk, in this thread, of memory. I will take that a step further and say that images, both moving and still, ARE my memories. Perhaps it is a burden of having a high IQ but I never really learned how to remember things correctly. I can be taught something and spit it back a day or two or even a week later, more if multiple choice. I need this sort of context to remember things or I forget. I often find myself in the process of remembering something only to realize I am remembering a photo that I took or one that I had seen at some point. Thus, it doesn't take seeing the actual photo again, only the idea that a photo was once taken and from that photo I can interpret what the event must have been like. When I was young, my parents were camera and camcorder happy, as all new parents tend to be, but as I got older the fascination of first steps and cute clothes withered and I became an angry teenager who didn't want to pose for overly eager parents. That is the time in my life that I remember the least. People make fun of me all the time. I carry a camera lest I forget.

There are other reasons too of course. I tend to line things up in a pleasing way. Whenever I drink the label of the bottle must be turned directly towards me. I turn other peoples labels sometimes too. I blink my eyes every time the windshield wipers hit the bottom. I'm always slightly adjusting my position in a room so that everything looks right. My right isn't always everybody elses right and sometimes I may even be wrong but I'm always left with the feeling that something important is going on in my mind. I did this and felt this way long before I started taking photos.

I feel the constant urge to create. It often doesn't matter what I am creating, it is the creating itself that is most creative. I find it hard to spend time with people who are not creating because if you aren't creating what are you really doing? I like creating in various artforms but at this point in my life I am fortunate that photography is the least time consuming. This is not to say that it doesn't consume a lot of time but you can take a singe good photo. My eventual goal in life is to make movies, but not as a career or to make money. I like to think of my images as a screen shot from a movie which is why I find setting a mood a crucial element and what I have to work on most. I also write but it's hard to write a single good word of a novel. I am grateful that photography is an art that can be as small or large a project as you desire.

Most importantly, I'm trying to get used to seeing with my own eyes. I don't think I have to train my eyes to see. I think I have to see if I can keep up with them.

Message edited by author 2005-02-09 20:44:31.
 02/09/2005 08:42:02 PM · #61
I have this desire to possibly make money doing photography some day. I think I just have to develop my skills some more and find a niche. I really like all types of photography still at this point...but I wouldn't mind just settling down and finding one area to put most of my concentration on...beit sports, models (which I'd like to try but probably will never have the opportunity to), street, landscape, or whatever else there is.
 02/09/2005 08:53:13 PM · #62
Achievement motivation. I like it when I do something well (that satisfies me, I mean), especially when I think it is something _worth_ doing well.

An amazing picture is definitely something to aspire towards. So I take pictures in the hope of making some like that myself.

When I haven't been feeling like photographing for a while, I browse this site, or betterphoto, or someplace with stunning pictures, and I feel like doing it again, to make pictures as good as some I see.

02/09/2005 08:56:11 PM · #63
I take photos for the only person that can see what I see.
 02/09/2005 09:04:24 PM · #64
not to be feeding a lot of crap but out of all honesty I say this;

The reason why I take photographs is simply to express myself. I am an artist, I also paint and draw but nothing feels as gradifing as expressing myself through a photo. I have to also say I am addicted to that feeling you get after you press the shutter button and you just know you got the shot you were trying hours to get. like some people jump from planes for the rush, I have a thing for the rush of nailing that "perfect" shot.

just my two cents
 02/09/2005 10:40:08 PM · #65
This is a great thread. Bumping because I want more!!
 02/10/2005 01:17:49 AM · #66
I shoot for me and because its fun.
02/10/2005 01:36:32 AM · #67
Originally posted by zeuszen:
I take pictures because I see them.


Not that I disagree with most of you wrote, but I find I'm almost the polar opposite to this statement.

I see things, because I take pictures - and that's what I like about photography.
 02/10/2005 01:54:40 AM · #68
I enjoy trying to find beauty in what we often take for granted.
 02/10/2005 02:10:48 AM · #69
It is not by accident or coincidence that we speak of taking a picture as "making an exposure", because indeed this is exactly what we do, at least when we have suceeded in "creating" an image; we have exposed what might otherwise go unseen. The musician gives voice to the unheard, the photographer to the unseen.

Robt.
 02/10/2005 02:22:54 AM · #70
Originally posted by zeuszen:
Originally posted by e301:
Originally posted by zeuszen:
I need to make pictures that have no market value.


I started taking pictures because I was bored, and found a cheap camera to buy, one day.

I continued to take pictures because my friends, whose opinions I respect, said they liked them.

Now I take pictures because I think I might be into something.

One day, I hope to take pictures because I know what that thing is.

I hope the magic lasts that long.

E


It may not be an 'it' - it may be an 'is'.


My third line was meant to read, 'Now I take pictures because I think I might be onto something', rather than into. It was late and I was tired. But I'm not sure that typo isn't a happy one.

ZZ: Surely, 'It may not be an 'it' - it may be being an 'is''.

E ;-)
 02/10/2005 07:42:37 AM · #71
I am fascinated by the responses here and I appreciate the time everyone took. I really thought about it and I guess I can't answer it yet for myself. I thank everyone again.
 02/10/2005 07:46:27 AM · #72
Do for you. Take at least ONE thing in your life and don't care what people think. The hell with them and everybody else. Go jump in a puddle on a hot summer day and live life, feel young and as long as your happy then ultimately who cares. Just have fun.
 02/10/2005 07:53:07 AM · #73
I love taken photos to keep memories
 02/10/2005 08:32:02 AM · #74
I like to look at the pictures afterwards... more than I enjoy taking them
 02/10/2005 08:39:12 AM · #75
Its funny that nsbca7 wrote "driven by an invisible muse" maybe that is my reason or the reason why we homo-sapiens attempt art at all. I've been a rock musician(in the most indie of senses) and what drives the process there, is an invisible creative force, fueled by joy, pain, lust... what have you. I just wanted to see if anybody else seriously had no reason other than the muse- the answers fascinate me.

for instance Bear Music's response moved me emotionally. "I take photographs because I can't hear. Light is the music of my heart." That is really profound because music I think hits at a more primal, visceral level. It is immediate and strikes chords in us (no pun intended) that resonate subconsciously. The visual arts are dissimilar in that the eye and brain filter the perception. The artistic experiance and immediate emotional attachment is more distant. Not to say less powerful, but different. So- in a non-hearing individual who values light, there is a benefit... light is present, or can be achieved at almost all times. Although I have my own songs and other people's songs in my head, along with tunes that need to shaped and written, they are notalways present, always at the surface, light sight, like light. SO- Although a picture shows only a short period of time- light is always there, and that can make it more powerful for Bear Music.

And how in the hell do you respond to ZeusZen's post- I guess only by saying that the wallpaper on my computer shows a great deal of dark and grainy storm clouds, with a white bird soaring through them. Thanks for the poetry ZeusZen- and the wallpaper.
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