| Author | Thread |
|
|
11/14/2005 04:18:04 PM · #1 |
Why is it so hard to look at photos the same way we look at a paintings? Many still ask the same questions when they are viewing photos: Who is that? What is this? Do I know him/her? What am I looking at? Can´t see this, cant´t see that.... When we look at a painting we usually only see the painting and maybe a title, nothing else, and we try to sense what we look at, NOT asking the narrow minded questiones assosicated with photos.
If we want photography to reach the status of art â this is something that has to change. And we, the photographers of the world, should start with ourselves.
//www.dpchallenge.com/image.php?IMAGE_ID=252651
The comments I received for my enty âDead End Streetâ in âDead Endâ challenge were mostly of this kind, f.ex.: Is that snow, or is it overexosed? Can't really see a street....This is a bit confusing. I can't really see where the street is... I'm not sure what I'm looking at, is it a fence? Or a gate?.. It's hard for me to see a street... looks too bright... Too much contrast.
This photo should be criticised for it´s lack of charm or form, for lousy color og texture, for technical failures or simply for being unintresting. Criticising the photo the way it was done does not tell me much... more about the people who wrote them.
I know most people in many parts of the world never see snow. It´s so white when it fresh from the air that it almost hurt your eyes. And of course the photographer is faced with contrast problems.
Well...just a thought.
Message edited by author 2005-11-14 16:19:43. |
|
|
|
11/14/2005 04:26:17 PM · #2 |
Originally posted by gsal:
Why is it so hard to look at photos the same way we look at a paintings? |
We, as photographers, consider ourselves to be sources of authority on the craft of photography. We look at paintings with much less interest on how it was done and are able to focus on what we see. Since we know a little bit about how photos are made, we tend to get wrapped up in that aspect of it and forget to look at what is in the image. |
|
|
|
11/14/2005 04:47:52 PM · #3 |
For me the confusion arose from your choice of title. To me it looks like a shot of a gate/fence. The gate appears to be the subject, I didn't look any deeper than that, or view it in any abstract way. But your title was specifically telling me this was a 'dead end street' - Something I just couldn't see in the shot.
If an artist painted a picture of a woman and called it 'man', do you think people would have questions about it? :)
I didn't critique the technical aspects, lack of charm/form, or technical failures (I don't think there are any major problems in these areas)
But instead I wrote about the thoughts your image evoked. And my puzzlement over the the title versus the image is not necessarily a bad thing. The image made me stop and think - I spent a long time looking at it compared to many of the other images in the challenge, and I took the time to comment. |
|
|
|
11/14/2005 05:22:14 PM · #4 |
| Had this been a painting, I would have probably assumed it was snow as the artist would have deliberately chosen white. Cameras do not choose colors. Had this been a painting I would have wondered why it was titled dead end street as no street was included, and it would still be unclear how it fit the challenge topic. |
|
|
|
11/14/2005 05:32:47 PM · #5 |
Based on widespread confusion about the connection of the title to the work (myself included), I'm curious as to your interpretation. Would you mind sharing?
|
|
|
|
11/14/2005 05:48:39 PM · #6 |
I mention my photo in the âDead Endâ challenge to prove my point rather than making it as a main subject in this forum.
But since you ask: I noticed this gate at an end of a road of an old farm. The size of the gate and the huge post (with the snow above in the left corner) made me think it was obvious this was the dead end of a road. At the other side of the gate was no road, just the dead grass on the snowy ground. I shot a dozens of images but ended with this one because of the forms, the three triangles, that I thought would make this image work.
This was on a frosty morning and the song of Ray Davies came to my mind: Dead End Street.
|
|
Home -
Challenges -
Community -
League -
Photos -
Cameras -
Lenses -
Learn -
Help -
Terms of Use -
Privacy -
Top ^
DPChallenge, and website content and design, Copyright © 2001-2025 Challenging Technologies, LLC.
All digital photo copyrights belong to the photographers and may not be used without permission.
Current Server Time: 08/26/2025 12:03:37 PM EDT.
