Tag: Mirror

Mastering Sharpness – Fuzzy Photos

How many things can go wrong that can render an image fuzzy.

How many times have you returned from a shoot with some photographs you are really excited about only to find out they are out of focus.  That’s always very disappointing and often frustrating.  And it happens all too often to me.  At the Joshua Tree Gathering this past March someone asked the question, ”How many ways can a photograph be out of focus,” and that got me thinking.  This would be a fun article to write.

But let’s get something straight from the start.  Not all ‘out of focus’ photographs are out of focus.  They may not be sharp but that can come from two causes.  They can actually be out of focus or they can be blurry.  This may seem like a subtle distinction but it’s an important one.  So let’s take them one by one and explore their causes and solutions.

But before we do, I want to make another very important point.  A photograph that is out of focus or blurry is not always a bad thing.  Often times the artist does it intentionally because that is his or her artistic vision.  When it’s done intentionally to create an expressive photograph then it’s not only OK, it’s necessary.  It’s when it’s unintentional that we get frustrated and loose great moments.

But now, let’s get into the details.  We’ll talk about blurs first.

Continue reading “Mastering Sharpness – Fuzzy Photos”

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Ansel Adams – The Making of 40 Photographs: Tenaya Creek, Dogwood, Rain

Ansel Adams’ “Tenaya Creek, Dogwood, Rain” photograph inspires a discussion of the importance of the “intensity of feeling” that is the beginning of a great photograh.

As I continue reading Ansel Adam’s fascinating book, ”Examples The Making of 40 Photographs” I continue to come across insights that I wish to share with you.

Ansel Adams - Tenaya Creek, Spring Rain, 1948-600

“Tenaya Creek Dogwood Rain” was taken one overcast spring day in 1948 as Adams was out looking for dogwoods to photograph.  He notice something along Tenaya Creek up by Mirror Lake and went exploring.  It was starting to rain and he almost returned to his car and the warmth of his accommodation when this scene caught his eye.  He went back to his car to retrieve his photographic gear including his 8X10 view camera.

I’m really taken by this photograph.  The light is perfect.  The white dogwood bracts glow against the green foliage.  It has a feeling of both intimacy and grandeur.  I would love to have a print.  It would be so easy to get lost in it.

The comments that Adams made that caught my attention (besides this beautiful photograph) deal with the inspiration the artist feels when interacting with a subject.  They are perfect and I must share them with you.

“The photographer learns to seek the essential qualities of his environment, no matter where he may be.  By this I mean he should be tuned to respond to every situation.  It is not enough to like or dislike; he must make an effort to understand what he is experiencing….  My life is full of memories of experiences that are of greater importance than recollections of mere things that have happened.  Unless I had reacted to the mood of this place with some intensity of feeling, I would have found it a difficult and shallow undertaking to attempt a photograph.”

In my own experience “intensity of feeling” comes with practice, experience, patience, slowing down, quieting the brain, opening up, understanding, respect, harmony, and reverence.  There is a very technical, analytical side to photography that can easily drown out the creative, inspirational side.  It is necessary to balance the two to create successful images.  Technical excellence without soul is sterile and empty.  Great photographs begin with inspiration, awe and wonder which is then captured and communicated through an abundance of technical skill.  We don’t find inspiration every time we go out but as our eye becomes more and more aware we find inspiration in more and more places.

We invite you to join the conversation.  Where do you find inspiration?  How has that changed over time?  We’d be interested in hearing your experiences.

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Oh, by the way, I couldn’t resist.  I purchased the photograph from the Ansel Adams Gallery.  It will arrive in a few days.  I’m so excited.

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