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03/28/2013 01:41:06 PM · #26 |
Originally posted by jagar:
I agree that we are attracted to or surrounded by certain subjects but i think there is much more to a style than that, I would love to shoot in America for some time or even back in England, I don't think that where I shoot would change my style too much, I maybe wrong though. |
It is certainly not all that defines one style, just a big part of it. |
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03/28/2013 01:54:16 PM · #27 |
Originally posted by jagar:
I agree that we are attracted to or surrounded by certain subjects but i think there is much more to a style than that, I would love to shoot in America for some time or even back in England, I don't think that where I shoot would change my style too much, I maybe wrong though. |
Your subject matter is definitely part of your style, but you have an editing style that is definitely distinct, as well. The two together is an extremely potent combination.
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03/28/2013 01:57:25 PM · #28 |
Originally posted by pixelpig:
If you have a recognizable style, if your work has applicable keywords, if it can be categorized/indexed, you can be found in a search. Nobody's going to ask for that wonderful photographer whose work is all over the place, you know, whatshisname? The marketplace wants predictability. The more specific the category is, the more idiosyncratic it is, the easier it is to come up first in the results of a search. Search for 'crying children photography' & Jill Greenberg comes up on top. Search 'landscape photography' & nobody comes up on top, it's too general a category.
So...if you are wondering what is your style, spend some time finding keywords for your work. Do some searches on those keywords to see what you get. Sensational or scandalous categories make you famous faster. Just ask Jill Greenberg. |
And you're right -- it's harder to have a style without a specific genre. If you're too generalized, the style gets lost.
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03/28/2013 02:11:38 PM · #29 |
Originally posted by vawendy:
And you're right -- it's harder to have a style without a specific genre. If you're too generalized, the style gets lost. |
____________
| |
| ! LOST ! |
| 1 Style |
| Age 11 |
| REWARD! |
|__________| |
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03/28/2013 02:51:40 PM · #30 |
Originally posted by tnun:
Ran across this recently:
"The proof of any art’s lasting value is a comprehensive emotional necessity: it’s something that a person needed to do and which awakens and satisfies corresponding needs in us." - Peter Schjeldahl, in The New Yorker, Jan. 13.
feeling our way in the dark |
AGREE. !!!!! Emotional necessity...... joy, pain, anger, fear, disgust, passion, lust, attraction, repulsion, admiration, longing, love (in many way shapes and forms) - GRIEF - sorrow....sickness.... innocence....... exultation.... plus thousands of variables expressed through myriads of vehicles/subjects/objects.........colors, shapes, shadows, nuances in lighting, tones, values, textures...... knowingly or unknowingly planned or unplanned
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03/28/2013 02:54:27 PM · #31 |
I believe, style is what emerges, usually over time and by a increasingly discriminating eye
for that which matters to us (not what we think, not what we may
aspire to for ourselves, but what we need and deeply yearn for,
often without having any idea it exists at all.
We arrive at it by interest and by reduction,
when we begin to discriminate between gists and mere aesthetics
and grow bold enough for beauty
that is truth.
'What Thou lovest
well remains.'
-E. Pound
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03/28/2013 03:08:06 PM · #32 |
Originally posted by zeuszen:
I believe, style is what emerges, usually over time and by a increasingly discriminating eye
for that which matters to us (not what we think, not what we may
aspire to for ourselves, but what we need and deeply yearn for,
often without having any idea it exists at all.
We arrive at it by interest and by reduction,
when we begin to discriminate between gists and mere aesthetics
and grow bold enough for beauty
that is truth.
'What Thou lovest
well remains.'
-E. Pound |
Well put!...... of course!!!! Perfect description of what I was attempting to say in my first expression in this thread..... and Ezra...you made me cry...the sheer beauty of the truth in that is perfect...... STYLE. :-)
“What thou lovest well remains,
the rest is dross
What thou lov’st well shall not be reft from thee
What thou lov’st well is thy true heritage”
Thank you zeuszen!
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03/29/2013 12:27:47 AM · #33 |
don't try for style.
try for good pictures.
let style come naturally from your own limitations.
and don't understand your style or you risk copying it. |
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03/29/2013 07:24:54 AM · #34 |
Originally posted by posthumous:
don't try for style.
try for good pictures.
let style come naturally from your own limitations.
and don't understand your style or you risk copying it. |
interesting, Don. I would think style would come from ones strengths not ones limitations?
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03/29/2013 07:29:43 AM · #35 |
Originally posted by gcoulson:
Originally posted by posthumous:
don't try for style.
try for good pictures.
let style come naturally from your own limitations.
and don't understand your style or you risk copying it. |
interesting, Don. I would think style would come from ones strengths not ones limitations? |
Agree. But Don needed an excuse :) |
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03/29/2013 08:19:34 AM · #36 |
Originally posted by posthumous:
don't try for style.
try for good pictures.
let style come naturally from your own limitations.
and don't understand your style or you risk copying it. |
wise words. shapes and edges of talent and output are directly related to what you can't do, versus what you can do. Your style obviously must be made up of your strengths, that is the "melody of the song" - but the "defining character" will be what is not included, what you do not do, your limits, self imposed or not- the "arrangement of the song." Sorry for the music analogies.
I guess the hard part, it seems, is knowing what not to do. |
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03/29/2013 08:59:15 AM · #37 |
talent and will allow one to learn more....every day....with every breath....limitations are most often self imposed especially in this techno age when all it takes is time and patience to sit and learn about things...... not so long ago I had NO CLUE as to even use a computer.......
understanding one's own style and seeing the beauty and truth in it will lead you to higher levels of each
it is an epiphany to see oneself and grow in one's own style....... a triumph to see oneself in truth and beauty it is also a choice
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03/29/2013 09:08:38 AM · #38 |
there is also risk involved in developing one's style.......
I just got last place in a challenge "make believe sports" cosmic joke lololol
I felt so accomplished having finally (temporarily...I am sure it was just luck) taught myself layers on Photoshop 10 (I shouldnt say that because it will open up a complete universe in my artistic work and I am and will be so excited to blend and merge my layered photography with my other media.....I can just see my hand made clay frames around multidimensional collage/mixed media......sh.....)
....finally attempted and came in last I dont care....
I will be THE example of trying. something. new.
NEW>
new new new
change is good
exciting and
inspiring
limitations is a word like always or never
the words limitation makes me nauseous
POSSIBILTIES!!!!!!!!!!!
think possibilities!!!!! develop new continue to learn change your style whenever you want |
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03/29/2013 09:12:54 AM · #39 |
This is one of the very rare times I have not read through the whole thread before posting. I've done so on purpose, because while I may agree or disagree with others, the whole heart of this is having a voice in the first place. As such, it's noteworthy that I may be repeating people. And I may not be. Who knows. This is my "style" of responding here.
Your work will never exist in a vacuum. A style is always a derivation. You learn and take from those you admire. It is much the same as comedians, but hopefully not nearly so cutthroat. You will see things you like and work to emulate those aspects you enjoy. Too often people are told to "find your voice, your style" before they appreciate the nuances. Dabble, screw around, see the edges of your realm and where you want to expand it. Then push with all you've got. But don't go aimlessly pushing wherever because you've been told you'd ought to. It will come when it will, and not a second sooner.
You can flail around with a style you think is your own because you feel pressured to develop one, or you can come about it as one ought to, through trial and error, through an investigation of one's desires, aims, and dreams.
I'd also like to point out that just because a style is not readily identifiable within the body of DPC, it does not mean there is not a powerful and great style at work. This has been shown when HCB and AA photos have been entered into challenges and passed over. Don't ever believe that the DPC aesthetic is the end-all-be-all. |
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03/29/2013 10:25:58 AM · #40 |
Very elegantly stated, Derek.
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03/29/2013 12:44:54 PM · #41 |
Originally posted by h2:
Originally posted by gcoulson:
Originally posted by posthumous:
don't try for style.
try for good pictures.
let style come naturally from your own limitations.
and don't understand your style or you risk copying it. |
interesting, Don. I would think style would come from ones strengths not ones limitations? |
Agree. But Don needed an excuse :) |
No, art comes from your strengths. Art is skill. Art is connecting to the universe. It is universal. Style is individual. It is your boundaries. HCB has a style because he was no good at setting up a shot like Man Ray did. And Man Ray was no good at candids.
Now, you can say that limitations are like the narrows of a river, where it has the most force precisely because it is so narrow. But don't limit yourself for that reason. To search for a style is to search for your limits. Don't do that. The best way to find your limits is to grow without thought of them. |
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03/29/2013 01:02:43 PM · #42 |
I like hearing the dead man.
If you want to do a certain thing
You first have to be a certain
person.
Once you have become
that certain person
you will not care any more
about doing that certain thing.
-Dôgen (I think)
Like Don said it's best not to search, wish I could do this though, I'll have to try without trying. |
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03/29/2013 01:04:31 PM · #43 |
Originally posted by posthumous:
Originally posted by h2:
Originally posted by gcoulson:
Originally posted by posthumous:
don't try for style.
try for good pictures.
let style come naturally from your own limitations.
and don't understand your style or you risk copying it. |
interesting, Don. I would think style would come from ones strengths not ones limitations? |
Agree. But Don needed an excuse :) |
No, art comes from your strengths. Art is skill. Art is connecting to the universe. It is universal. Style is individual. It is your boundaries. HCB has a style because he was no good at setting up a shot like Man Ray did. And Man Ray was no good at candids.
Now, you can say that limitations are like the narrows of a river, where it has the most force precisely because it is so narrow. But don't limit yourself for that reason. To search for a style is to search for your limits. Don't do that. The best way to find your limits is to grow without thought of them. |
Maybe HCB just didn't want to set up shots like Man Ray and Man Ray had less fun going outside and wait for a motif. A personal style comes, when you shoot what you like - for sure not when you shoot what you don't enjoy as much - I can light a portrait, but I enjoy lighting stills and food and flowers much more. |
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03/29/2013 01:28:22 PM · #44 |
Originally posted by jagar:
I like hearing the dead man.
If you want to do a certain thing
You first have to be a certain
person.
Once you have become
that certain person
you will not care any more
about doing that certain thing.
-Dôgen (I think)
Like Don said it's best not to search, wish I could do this though, I'll have to try without trying. |
the freedom of unintended consequences, like creation itself. |
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03/29/2013 01:36:26 PM · #45 |
There is a joke among musicians.
A single mistake is an error.
A group of mistakes is a theme.
A lifetime of mistakes is a style.
If you are creating from the heart, you should not be able to see your own style. If you are working in an intentionally mannered way, then you are limiting yourself to conform to a cliche. Each person's eye and mind takes in things a bit differently, be it what we look at, or how we look at something. That vision naturally carries over to the resulting photographs. The more a person photographs,the more streamlined their process, the more their photographs convey their unique way of seeing. A personal style is the remnant of a process, not a starting point. |
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03/29/2013 02:29:11 PM · #46 |
"Now, you can say that limitations are like the narrows of a river, where it has the most force precisely because it is so narrow. But don't limit yourself for that reason. To search for a style is to search for your limits. Don't do that. The best way to find your limits is to grow without thought of them." posthumous
At the narrows one can harness quite a bit of power.....super concentration propells future movement.....
I must be thinking more strongly in contexts outside of the realm explained here.... ALTHOUGH
all of you search....constantly...unconsciously or not....the nature of this site is to do just that....to be posed with a challenge and then to search one's scope of understanding for an offering........
on a potter's wheel, a limitation can immediately ruin a work in progress, but analyzing and confronting and then learning from the limitation allows one to learn and to literally be able to control the spinning mass of clay......
painting with viridian green instead of olive green brings an entirely different result than with chromium oxide....one needs to search for the tools to develop ones style...
writing a poem one searches for the correct spelling of an unfamiliar word.....thus gaining tools for one's style
being able to master a choice through practice and then to be free in ones control allows development of style...... I LIKE to develop my style in my art work....and I emulate a certain style based on the level of satisfaction it gives me...it is my truth.
"If you are working in an intentionally mannered way, then you are limiting yourself to conform to a cliche."
BrennanOB -
I disagree... quite a bit of music is played with notes in a mostly mannered and intentional way... it is the INTERPRETATION of playing music that creates one's own style...... to set an intention allows one to set a goal....to set a goal...one is motivated....to be motivated is to live.....
setting intentions help clarify chaos...
"the freedom of unintended consequences, like creation itself"- tnun :-)
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03/29/2013 03:56:21 PM · #47 |
Originally posted by BrennanOB:
There is a joke among musicians....
A lifetime of mistakes is a style. |
Hey, by that measure I must be the style king! ;-)
I can probably count on one hand the number of times I've played a song all the way through without a "mistake" of some kind ... |
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03/29/2013 04:11:30 PM · #48 |
Originally posted by h2:
Originally posted by posthumous:
No, art comes from your strengths. Art is skill. Art is connecting to the universe. It is universal. Style is individual. It is your boundaries. HCB has a style because he was no good at setting up a shot like Man Ray did. And Man Ray was no good at candids.
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Maybe HCB just didn't want to set up shots like Man Ray and Man Ray had less fun going outside and wait for a motif. A personal style comes, when you shoot what you like - for sure not when you shoot what you don't enjoy as much - I can light a portrait, but I enjoy lighting stills and food and flowers much more. |
You "maybe" disagree with my example but you don't seem to be disagreeing with my point. |
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03/29/2013 04:19:01 PM · #49 |
Originally posted by LoVi:
"If you are working in an intentionally mannered way, then you are limiting yourself to conform to a cliche."
BrennanOB -
I disagree... quite a bit of music is played with notes in a mostly mannered and intentional way... it is the INTERPRETATION of playing music that creates one's own style...... to set an intention allows one to set a goal....to set a goal...one is motivated....to be motivated is to live.....
setting intentions help clarify chaos... |
The risk of following the stylistic lead of another in music is becoming a cover band. If you simply perform the originals of another, you are relegated to a wedding band status. Creating a live version of the recording of another artist is seen as derivative and of no artistic value. Entertaining and worthy of technical praise it lacks value because it is done in the style of another. If you make your own version of another's song, the more divergent the better. When Johnny Cash covered Nine Inch Nails' song Hurt, he changed it enough to make it his own and create something amazingly unique.
Adding the elements that you enjoy in the work of another is a great learning tool, and can spur your own style, but the risk is in following the masters without adding enough of yourself to get above the level of a cover band.
Message edited by author 2013-03-29 16:20:10. |
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03/29/2013 04:19:24 PM · #50 |
Originally posted by LoVi:
on a potter's wheel, a limitation can immediately ruin a work in progress, but analyzing and confronting and then learning from the limitation allows one to learn and to literally be able to control the spinning mass of clay......
painting with viridian green instead of olive green brings an entirely different result than with chromium oxide....one needs to search for the tools to develop ones style...
writing a poem one searches for the correct spelling of an unfamiliar word.....thus gaining tools for one's style |
that sounds more like finding the limitations of the medium, rather than *your* limitations.
Originally posted by LoVi:
being able to master a choice through practice and then to be free in ones control allows development of style...... I LIKE to develop my style in my art work....and I emulate a certain style based on the level of satisfaction it gives me...it is my truth.
"If you are working in an intentionally mannered way, then you are limiting yourself to conform to a cliche."
BrennanOB -
I disagree... quite a bit of music is played with notes in a mostly mannered and intentional way... it is the INTERPRETATION of playing music that creates one's own style...... to set an intention allows one to set a goal....to set a goal...one is motivated....to be motivated is to live..... |
interpretation is not the same as style. if you focus on interpretation then you are focused on the work itself. if you focus on style then you are focused on yourself as an artist and how you (or some version of you) appear through your work. For example, you might think "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" is best interpreted in a very fast tempo, but then the part of you worried about style might decide to do it in a slow tempo because that suits *you* better, as opposed to the song.
I don't mean to say it's impossible for an artist to focus on style. However, I would not encourage the questioner to go down that path just because he sees that great artists have style. At the very least, don't focus on style until *after* you have one.
And btw, you talk about "developing" your style. That means you're changing your style, not trying to conform to it, which is my main point.
Message edited by author 2013-03-29 16:20:53. |
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