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DPChallenge Forums >> Photography Discussion >> Five Years
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04/06/2007 03:03:54 AM · #1
Alexis Arabella, 2002:
At the time, I was hugely proud of this shot...
.
Lexi was my new puppy and the Sony 717 was my new camera. I was hot.

Lexi, 2005.

Final shots with the 717 (though I didn't know it then), what a difference a few years of practice made.

Lexi today with her new little sister Bridgette:

I didn't post this thread to show you guys how my doggy has grown. I really want to remind us all and especially the newer shooters that persistence and practice really does pay off. When we first hear that calling "I want to shoot, I want to shoot well!" it is really intimidating. Everyone seems to shoot better than we can achieve. We shoot what we see in our minds eye, but we get snapshots from the camera. Its frustrating!

I know 5 years is a long time, longer than dental school, but for me that's how long it took to go from shooting my doggy in bright sun and from a horrible POV shooting something like art (if you call it that). I think everyone has their pace; some move very fast, some much slower.

My advice: Shoot every day. Shoot anything! Try all styles and methods. And when you edit - be your own worst enemy. Don't look at the work of others so much as look at the comments about them. There you will find the flaws. Develop a critical eye and turn it to your own work. If you keep one shot out of 1,000... be sure its a good one. Read everything. The net will answer every question if you google. Smile & shoot happy. :)

Edit the typing errors that I caught.. I'm sure there are others.

Message edited by author 2007-04-06 09:37:29.
04/06/2007 03:07:06 AM · #2
Cindi- I believe you are obsessive(in a good way) about your photography and your passion shows in your work. What a difference 5 years can make with lots of hard work. Keep on keepin on!
04/06/2007 03:59:03 AM · #3
Great post, Cindi. You are a fountain of encouragement and inspiration.

Message edited by author 2007-04-06 03:59:41.
04/06/2007 04:52:09 AM · #4
I echo Art entirely. Thank you not just for this (very timely) piece of encouragement and very sensible advice, but also for the way in which you share your technical knowledge; it is posts like these that make this site the community that it is.
04/06/2007 05:03:49 AM · #5
Originally posted by idnic:

Everyone seems to shoot better than we can achieve.


So true!

Thanks for the post, good advice, sometimes need a gentle bit of encouragement :) Thanks !
04/06/2007 05:07:21 AM · #6
New to dpc and just looked at your photos. They are great. I hope to advance to be able to shoot and be creative like you.
04/06/2007 05:28:05 AM · #7
I love your passion and it's good to hear that it isn't an overnight thing. It seems I find faults in almost every image I take and then when I find a good one I consider it in context of DPC photographers and that scares me. There are too many good photogs active on here!

4.25 years to go for me then ;)
04/06/2007 05:34:53 AM · #8
Wow, it's really cool seeing the change.

I'm a beginner, but I just think it's exciting that there's so much out there to learn. I seem to be picking up about one PhotoShop tool a day (and still haven't run out), and the photo discussions on this website made me think about all sorts of photography things I never would have even considered before... I'm glad there's people here who totally kick ass - it gives me someone to learn from :)

Thanks for posting those!
04/06/2007 05:45:41 AM · #9
Thank you Cindi! Great words of encouragement. Whenever I am kicking myself I will think of this post. I have so much to learn!
04/06/2007 09:45:56 AM · #10
:) Very glad some of you are able to find inspiration in my message. Sometimes all we need is a gentle reminder to keep going.

04/06/2007 10:51:38 AM · #11
Great Post, Cindi!
Everyone needs encouragement! We can so easily get ourselves in a rut and think we suck at any stage. Just 5 yrs, huh? I have a few to go but I hope to be as good as you when I get there!

I want to add to this post and remind people not to just toss the garbage shots out without really looking at them too! You can learn a lot from the images that you think are trash can quality. Study them, learn from them, then toss them out! LOL I think I have learned more from them than the good ones.
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