Bret Doss: Sights and Insights

Over the last few days, I have been reading some threads here and there about gear selection, whether it improves one’s photography.

I also read some interesting comments in the P52 Flickr forums about art, fine art, what is art, what is not art.

Not gonna touch the “what is art?” question with my Manfrotto Super Boom….

The intermingled reading of thoughts and comments on both topics led me to consider that underlying both topics, both sets of choices/decisions, there is a common foundation: Vision and Intention.

One differentiator offered as a means to distinguish Art was Intention. If the creator of the image intended to be creating art, then s/he was off to a good start. The quality of the art, the success of the artistic intention might or might not be achieved, but the Intention was a critical component.

It occurs to me that this dovetails nicely with the discussions about whether gear can or does make one a better photographer. For example, we all at one time or another have been asked by someone “What camera do you recommend?  What camera should I buy?”

Often, deeper questions need to be asked: What kind of pictures do you take now? What kind of images do you hope to take in the future?  What do you like/dislike about the camera you have now?

The answers to these questions lead us to Vision and Intention.

Vision and Intention drive the creative process. Without them, we flail around randomly. The flailing can be fine, even wonderful: we can find a grip on something, orient ourselves, and make a discovery. In fact, the occasional Random Flail can be a valuable method of grabbing hold of something, pulling ourselves out of a rut. If it weren’t for all the random stuff I have tried, I wouldn’t have discovered quite a few things that I really enjoy.

But let’s say we have flailed away, found our footing, and have a direction. We have an Intention to create an image, and a Vision of the image we intend to create.

Will more or “better” or expensive gear make us better photographers?  Probably not.

Will the right Gear help us to achieve the Intended Vision?  Probably, to the extent that our vision, intention, or skill depends on any particular sort of gear.

We shoot with the gear we have. Vision, Intention, gear can be co-dependent. We may require different gear to achieve a specific vision, or  we may allow our vision to be limited by the gear we have. “If only I had that camera/lens/light, I could do ______”

If we twist the questions, the assumptions a bit, we might be able to say: How can I achieve the vision with what I have?  If I cannot, can I find a variation that can be done with what I have? This could lead to very creative, original approaches: instead of binding our vision to the standard methods and gear, we have to find another way.

The gear we have, or the gear we rent/borrow/buy does not, in and of itself, make us better photographers. Gear can provide a tool that has additional creative possibilities: what we do with those possibilities determines whether we grow creatively, become better photographers. Our Vision & Intentions drive us, and drive the use of the gear.

The path can be somewhat circular, of course: a different lens allows new possibilities, and so what we see, our Vision, can be changed, enhanced by the new opportunities the lens makes possible.

I recently acquired a wide-angle zoom. I had never used or owned one. There were no doubt countless image opportunities I didn’t consider previously. Now, however, I see new images, new opportunities all the time. Does the new lens make me a better photographer?  Not a bit. Does it open my eye wider, enhance my Vision, and offer me new Intentions?

Absolutely.

While there is a chicken/egg element to this (you have to have some sort of gear to make a photograph, after all), I think it is Vision & Intention that makes us seek out a tool to make an image in the first place.

Vision & Intention are not static, or at least shouldn’t be. Dynamic change & growth in various directions needs to be supported & fed with new experiences, skills, knowledge, and tools. Whether those tools consist of the finest studio strobes in the world, or window light and white foam core reflectors is unimportant, with no right or wrong answer.

Participation in Project 52 is not contingent upon your type or amount of gear. All you really need to join the welcoming group is Intention. Seeing the work of others, participating to the degree you are able in the assignments, and attending the weekly review/critique online will serve to enhance & expand your Vision, and increase your knowledge & skills to achieve present and future goals.

It is not too late to join, you don’t need to have or get special gear, you don’t have to pass a test.

You just need the Intention.