I was recently posed this question by my good friend and exceptional French Street Photographer Jeff Chane-Mouye. The next Jean-Paul Sartre perhaps? It’s a philosophical question and one that maybe we should all ask ourselves. There’s going to be a lot of statements followed with a question mark in this blog post and I won’t be answering them all. What I would like to hear though is your opinion? Jeff also made the point and I’m paraphrasing here: Some photographers have lost themselves in Social Media, chasing the Glory Shot to achieve their daily dose of likes on Instagram or whatever platform they use. They’ve become almost mechanical in their approach.
Wise words from Jeff and he makes a salient point. More often than not I agree with him and he gave me a reason to pause for thought. I’ll discuss some of my conclusions here, just to be clear I’m not judging others in any way whatsoever. Each to their own as they say. I’ll begin though by stating that I for one am delighted that others have chosen to show their work and there’s a shining star of photography that of course didn’t.
Above is a typical example that I found on Instagram yesterday…hang on a minute…I posted that! I’m guilty of posting a shot that I thought others might like, what a bloody hypocrite I am. All the photos contained within this blogpost I took this week and I chose that one to post first on Instagram. I wonder why? It’s okay, a bit on the cliché side, on the plus side I didn’t use any post production trickery to make that geometric shaft of light, which is a method we often see used, it’s all real apart from the conversion to black & white. I know why I picked it. I’ve been spending a lot of time recently looking through my photography books and particularly those related to Street Photography. As I walked along I saw this guy with a cloth cap and it reminded me of quite a few of the images I’d been looking at, black & white documentary/street photos form the 1960’s. Those shots always resonate with me and it follows that so did this scene. I would have taken it regardless of sharing anywhere. That’s the difference, I’m taking photographs for me, not going out with the only intention of capturing something that I can show to get a dopamine fix.
Black & White contrasty images will always get attention, post only those, if and here’s the real question, that is what you’re looking for?
I’m not looking for attention and I say that I don’t care what others think, yet I post photos here and to Social Media. Evidently I do care? What is it I’m looking for? Validation? Acceptance from my peers? Likes? I’d say no to almost all of those questions, however, why do I bother to post them? It’s tempting to head in a different direction:
Man, that’s a lot of questions, I did warn you at the beginning.
I want my photos to be seen. Inherently with photography the resulting images are meant to be seen. If you’re getting paid to shoot weddings or family sessions then obviously the results are being viewed by the people who commissioned you in the first place and further more seen by those people that the commissioners/subjects want to view. There’s also a documentary issue, we’re documenting, but for whom? Someone couldn’t say '“I’m a documentary photographer, but I’m not showing any photographs”. Could they?
Going back to Jeff’s original question then yes I would still take photos. I enjoy the process and it gives a purpose. I’m happiest when I know that the next day I’ll get an opportunity to get out on the street and shoot. I like looking at the results, very occasionally I like the results! That process is cathartic, it’s zen like. I feel at peace when I’m simply watching, living in the moment, totally aware of the present, but not myself. Looking for subtle nuances in light or expressions or movements.
I was watching a documentary a few days ago about Don McCullin recommended to me by Rod Higginson. You might remember from this blog that we met up a couple of weeks ago - you can read that here, just me and Rod, Don McCullin wasn’t there unfortunately! Anyway, in this documentary he is still out photographing at 83 years old. He says “the camera keeps me going, gives me reason to get out”. He follows these trips with five or six hours in the darkroom, a place where he can simply get lost, relax and occasionally get excited at what the developer is revealing. Similarly I feel that way when I’m sorting through an SD Card on the computer, I’m lost and relaxed. If I wasn't going to show them I’d still do and feel exactly the same, the camera gives me a purpose too.
I want feedback from my peers, people I respect or admire in photography. I want them to see my work. It would be a perfect world if all I needed to do was publish a book or have an exhibition of some kind. Yes, that still happens, we can still share that way, but the world has changed. The easiest, most inexpensive way to show a photograph to my peers is through the internet. Whether it be through a blog like this or Social Media. My only concern with the internet is photograph/copyright theft which is a subject for another day.
At the beginning of this post I said that I am eternally grateful to those that do share their work. My bookshelf is witness to that and I also mentioned that there was a shining star in photography that chose not to share. She undoubtedly learnt and was influenced by the huge book collection she possessed, yet chose not to share herself. Of course that photographer was the late and so very great Vivian Maier . Posthumously published and one of the best in my opinion, I can’t imagine any photographer hasn’t heard of her, if you haven’t follow that link. Should we follow her lead?
As always my sincere thanks go to anyone taking the time to read this blog.
All images can be opened by clicking on the thumbnails and are taken using a Leica M with Summicron 28mm Lens fitted.
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