The Joy of Slow Learning in Photography For Beginners

Is it really possible to master photography overnight, or is there more to this journey than meets the eye?
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00:00 - Learn Photography Fast
00:26 - Beginner Photography Advice
01:29 - Photography Adventure
02:50 - You Learn Photography Through Experience
06:32 - The Infinite options When Learning Photography
09:13 - Just Take Photos
12:33 - It's Your Own Path In Photography

[@ThePhotographicEye]

I'm planning a deep dive video soon - let me know which you prefer by voting in this poll: kzbin.infoUgkxUm0wkclAeVzC75hklwnZDsObmsak9hCu

[@shawhit8155]

Dear TPE, this may not be interesting for you right now, I'll offer: I am a hobbyist ink and watercolor artist. The encouragement and philosophy you offer your photography students speaks profoundly to where I am in my creative process. The resistance, the doubt, the inability to appreciate the process, the striving for "good" results, all of this. One must speak to one's niche, I suppose, but I get the sense that your material is useful for anyone learning anything ever. Your work reaches well beyond your genre. Many thanks; I hope you receive much benefit from it.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you

[@Anon54387]

@@ThePhotographicEye Entirely off topic and perhaps even trivial, but you guys from the UK have a consistency that we Americans do not. You guys say mathematics and maths, we Americans say mathematics and math. Despite our inconsistency and your consistency on this, to the American ear the consistency of saying maths sounds odd to the American ear.

[@rajismyfavorite]

I struggled with this a lot when I first started. I honestly sometimes still struggle with thinking my pictures aren't good enough or that I'm progressing fast enough. What I found helpful was changing my mindset. It wasn't a failure if I didn't get any pictures I liked or only one. It was practice. Every time I went out, I was improving my skills and getting more practice. The biggest thing was getting out even when I didn't feel like it. I've improved in my photography a lot of over the past few years and can see that in my older pictures. I know I'll always be learning and I look forward to seeing where I can over the next five years.

[@grandpascuba]

Unfortunately social media and the internet have turned us into an instant gratification society. I’m 67 and have been serious about photography since I eas 12. I’ve been working on my photography for 55 years. And, I am still learning. Ansel Adams was right. Twelve really good photos a year is a pretty good number.

[@swalker9513]

Interesting topic. I am a hobbyist. I've taken some photos for money, but my main interest in photography is as an artist. As a commercial photographer, there are certainly skills that can be learned rather quickly...ie, lighting a beer glass. With a little bit of practice, one can get competent enough to sell themselves as a beer glass photographer. However, this idea of "the perfect landscape" or "the perfect street photo" is just ridiculous. I don't even know what that means. The joy is in the journey. I've taken some photos that I like quite a lot. I have no idea if they are any "good"...don't care really. I like them.

[@Anon54387]

Exactly so. Similarly, one can fairly easily learn to be a technical writer such as writing instructions on how to start a lawnmower, use a DVD player or a blender, etc. But writing a novel is another matter entirely, the technical aspects of writing are just a starting point for THAT endeavor, but imagination and creativity coupled with the discipline of spending many hours at the computer typing is REALLY where a novel comes from. And one has to love it because the likelihood of earning a lot of money from artistic photography, oil painting or writing that novel are very slim. Statistically, one is more likely to be a major league baseball player than being able to earn a living from writing novels alone, and that's not getting rich writing novels just making a modest living from it by turning out a novel per year. So, IMO, one should only endeavor to be a novelist if one really enjoys the process of writing.

[@TimWells745]

It's so easy to learn all the technical aspects about how the camera works and light and so on and so forth but learning it in your head and understanding how to use that knowledge in practice are different things. You can have all the technical knowledge and still not understand how to apply it and that is something that is always (I think) going to come with practice. That old saying "practice makes perfect" is true. Knowledge might help you start but experience is what will make you. You gain experience in something by doing it, failing, learning why it failed and doing it again.

[@californiahiker9616]

Thanks for your thoughts! In my quest to take the perfect photograph I made a lot of beautiful mistakes. I took a lot of hikes, traveled places, watched my flowers grow, and captured countless sunsets. I think it is second nature to me to frame photographs in my mind even when I’m not really planning on taking any. It’s amazing how often you just stumble onto an interesting opportunity! The photographic journey is like life itself… it’s about the journey, not the destination. I feel in photography, like in life, you never stop learning, never stop improving. The day you stop, oh well. You’ve arrived!

[@ladymary22]

The process is the Joy.

[@the_rat_run]

"It is all about what YOU are willing to do..." - There is wisdom, Alex! (13:55) I'm strictly a hobby photographer - but have taken some of the best (for me) photos just walking with my dogs and looking at everything along the way... None are great, but many please me. I'm learning to see, rather than just look.

[@flightographist]

Always on the money. I come from the perspective that the art exists in a multidimensional hypervolume. There is really no beginning or end state, just the in-between- inhabit the space.

[@haimberman3351]

I am aware that most of the joy lies in the journey, not in reaching the destination (if there even is one). I've been photographing for a relatively short while, and I feel that the more I photograph the main skill I develop is the skill of seeing, of observing. I had a very basic education about photography. No art school, just some course on exposure, a workshop on documentary work, and another on street photography. I mainly tried to hone my photographic eye by cramming in as many sources of inspiration that resonated with me as I could, and that has also fired my passion. I took to heart Joel Mayrowitz's advice that photographing is just a liscense to see, and each and everyone of us has his unique contribution based on his own experience, so how can one size fits all formula to take us to the peaks of photography even exist? I enjoy the exploration and I feel that I struggle with each photo, and when it comes out close to the way I envisioned it, I just feel good about the photo itself. I don't think that I honed a particular skill, certainly not in a structured way. I guess the experience is growing with time, yet not in a conscious or controlled way for me.

[@bjdlh01]

This is the advice I needed right now! I am at a plateau and frustrated I can't take the next growth step. "Stop Fretting about what you're fretting over". That's what I needed to hear.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thanks for watching

[@largophoto]

Alex ..you nailed it ..instant gratification..and stored images on the cellphone and stored memory card ..what changed ..we used to photograph with intent and purpose and a print to show

[@emilychauu]

This video resonates so well! My first few months of shooting were met with frustration since I wasn’t instantaneously creating shots I loved. Now, one of my greatest motivators that makes me love going out to shoot is having been able to look back on my work and see how my process and style has evolved. Instead of feeling pressure to go out and take masterpieces, I now venture out with the mindset that I’m there to add another piece to the story of my photographic journey and to keep growing.

[@peterlieberzeit3138]

The 30 seconds for a perfect photo are indeed possible. But only at one condition: if you have worked hard for so that inspiration hits a prepared mind. At least that is what science taught me ;-) .... Your video emphasizing the point that art (or also "non-artistic" photography) is not only inspiration, but perspiration, really resonates with me.

[@AliasJimWirth]

I have heard and I have experienced this truth: we rarely value that which comes to us easily. I think we are wired to value that which we have worked hard to obtain. There is a satisfaction in the achievement or accomplishment which we can know in no other way. Good video and topic, Alex.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you

[@christiankujawa965]

You are conveying meaning beyond the process. Only just discovered your videos. Your portrayal of Eve Arnold’s photography brought tears, this video was philosophy, applicable beyond photography. Thank you for sharing from that depth of experience and reflection. These are timeless videos.

[@emmanuelpower2439]

Yes to the journey . thank you😊

[@ThePhotographicEye]

You are so welcome

[@stansabev]

I’m a hobbyist to the point that I’m at the exact spot you’re talking about. I’m shooting everyday, I mean every single day, and I’m not good at all:-), it is extremely frustrating, tedious, demotivating and feels pointless all along. As I’m saying that, I’m reading books, watching videos, thinking of ideas a lot, because of you and the Chanel, every night I’m editing old photos, meanwhile. The last month was rock bottom and then some. Keep in mind I’m shouting Leica:-), what can go wrong, right😂? And remember that last summer I was of to Germany for trip with friends, and I decided to open the folders and send them some and then, wow, I like the first one, then I make a preset for the other once and after a while I was trying to select the best ones and I started to see my all of the lessons from the books, videos, and other materials. Get close, shoot where you belong, learn the rules then break it, photograph the person not the mask, make it monochrome for texture and use Ansel Admams scale of shades and so on. It take maturity to realize what you did and when, interesting enough I shoot that with my point and shoot canon 360 point and shoot 📸. Stove Jobs summarized it best, you can only connect the dots looking backwards. In this case what I’ve learn is I have to keep going, and edit materials shoot not earlier that six months after the fact. Now I’m exited for this year, and hopefully my Leica catch up! Thank you Alex😎

[@kennethnielsen3864]

Thanks for sharing.

[@dandann8237]

Another thought provoking conversation, thankyou. I used to worry about what people thought of my images, now it more a 'here is my image, i like it!, by showing it to you I am giving you the opportunity to like it as well! ' Yes I can do better but it is what it is for the moment'

[@user-jj7yz3yd1s]

I started taking photos with my father in the seventies. I'm 62 now and still learning!

[@douglasdollars]

As said in the comments, the joy is definitely the journey. The more I look back over nearly two decades of photos, the more I'm convinced I'm lucky if I get four a year that I remain even happy to share. All the same I still print myself a quick book yearly of my favorites of that year (60 pages, requiring me to have about one 'nice' photo per week or five per month), and nestle it next to each other years' books.

[@autisticlife]

Thank you this is a helpful video.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Glad it was helpful!

[@judeemclaughlin7394]

The doing is often more important than the outcome - Arthur Ashe

[@brucegordon6969]

Excellent thoughts! Thank you for sharing! It seems you love Edinburgh as much as I do… I’m really looking forward to going back this summer!

[@mjborg1337]

Thanks Alex. Not only do you get me thinking about photography but today you put into words what I knew or discovered and that is "Inspiration comes with working". There are many times I shoot and then I come up with an idea or image that I did not think about before hand and its almost miraculous. It is such a wonderful exciting feeling.

[@DylanPStephens]

Hey Alex, another wonderfully insightful video from the best photography channel on KZbin. What I found particularly impressive was the Bastille Day photo that you took in 1952! Joking aside don’t stop what you’re doing. Thanks for your inspiration

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Wow, thanks!

[@DylanPStephens]

@@ThePhotographicEye no, thank you. I already consider myself competent enough to hold a camera the right way up but I am learning so much more about photography from you. Thank you!

[@kaykofsky9128]

Thank you so much. There's a lot of wisdom in your words!

[@ThePhotographicEye]

You are so welcome!

[@motormoby]

I totally blame Instagram for driving the need to be instantly good

[@RolandWDunn]

Inspirational stuff. Thank you. x

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@grabtharandhishammer8251]

Hey Alex, another great video. I see this "perfection" thing as being heavily influenced by the highly curated view of the world we are provided via social media. People rarely are confident enough to put up the failures, so this just reinforces the perfection scenario. As well as photography I am a leatherworker, and I have been contemplating posting my most recent "failure"" just to show that not everything comes out the way you expect. The larger question is really, "Is that a failure?". Continuous improvement is always possible and only really stops when you give up. Your video has helped me decide that I will show my failures as well as successes. Thanks again.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thanks for watching

[@ptom711]

I’ve been taking pictures since I was a boy of 10, 60 years ago. I could only afford to do that because I worked doing odd jobs and could pay for two or three rolls of film and the processing a year. Sometimes it took me a while to shoot the whole roll and get the money to process it. When I got the pictures back I didn’t care if they were good or bad they were magic and exciting even if a bit blurry. I still shoot for the magic of it. I can spend a whole afternoon and take a couple hundred pictures and have a wonderful time and not caring about if any of the shots I took were perfect. My darkroom era was very magical. Digital is also magical. I spend hours on my thousands of photos seeing if I can make them better or turn them into something else. It is a wonderful way to spend time. Most of my inspiration today comes from my iPhone and using it to produce images and it is magic too. If no one ever sees them it doesn’t matter (ok it does a little) it was still a magical experience doing it.

[@dreamscuba]

Very thought provoking and topical. Reminds me of the saying, “if you don’t have time to meditate for 10 minutes a day, you need to meditate for an hour a day”… I’m thinking that maybe I want to explore how I can augment the music I create with the images I take; and I’m not a videographer, I like to take stills. Keep up the great work. My Photographers A-Z arrived.

[@kevinbull6597]

Perfect timing for me on this video Alex, feeling a little frustrated at the moment with my slow progress. You have given me an awesome reminder that photography is a long journey and not a quick sprint. Thank you!

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Happy to help!

[@Anon54387]

@@ThePhotographicEye That little highlight on that bit of trim at the top of that phone booth adds that little extra something to that photo. Either some of those red phone booths have made their way across the Atlantic or someone here has made some replicas since one sees one from time to time, one at a bar in California with the bar having their neon sign inside the phone booth.

[@donaldgibson1642]

Thank you...again

[@rraschka2112]

I enjoy golf. I can go out for 4 hours and invent some of the most colorful expletives. I can spend a weekend wandering with a camera, not get 1 "portfolio" image, and never utter anything more than, "next time"....with a smile.

[@jpsteiner2]

Great advice.

[@jamesbarnes3063]

Great things to ponder , I have covid right now and getting out and making images not right now.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Get well soon.

[@TomPark1986]

I love your channel. Great insights. It has helped me do very well.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Great to hear!

[@paulineengelberts7276]

Thanks, this was a comforting clip! Though well meant, the 'quick fix & learn ads' have made me feel insecure as I wonder if I am doing the right thing - or like the right images - as I don't seem to make the perfect ones :-) I am getting more comfortable in just relying on myself to value what I see and observe. Your channel helps me in this.

[@chrisparsons]

As someone who annually reviews the frames I’m making-and compares them to prior years-I cannot agree more about the value of learning over time and, equally importantly, celebrating the small and slow successes in how we make images. You can spend a year (or more) developing some small skill or another and we should appreciate when that skill in question is realized. Thanks for using your channel to express the value in doing so, and for your the work you produce more broadly.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thanks for watching

[@seaeagles6025]

Hi Alex, I never went to photography school and I new it would take me longer to learn, but boy was it worth it. I bought my first DSLR camera in 2011 and it wasn't until 2016 when I got out of the Green Full Automatic mode. I'm glad I didn't rush to learn about photography, I can really appreciate it more now. I do love the Hammer Of Truth. Very relatable subject this was to me, thank you 😊

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thanks for sharing!

[@seaeagles6025]

@@ThePhotographicEye Your very welcome Alex 😊

[@billgreen1140]

Thank you for addressing this topic. The idea that the path to meaningful photography should be as fast and easy as possible is baffling to me. I started in photography in 1970. The learning process was long but oh so enjoyable. Each step was a rewarding adventure. I just don’t understand the desire to bypass the joy of learning.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thanks for sharing!

[@awendar3173]

Hello, i want to say thank you for all that you doing, i found your channel when looked for some tips about photography like a year ago. I'm not a professional and not a hobbyist, but I'm studying aat university on photography course, and to be honest hehe i tried a lot to learn photography fast and yeah... Nothing good from it, but after finding your channel i started think about photography more mindful. Firstly i was all about nature and macro and landscape photography, and i was very eager about it, but time after time i started looking on things from the perspective i never would before, all thanks to your i won't say "guide" but wise words about "journey of photography" I'm very passionate about beauty and meaningful things that i can find in simple stuff. I'm sure there is so many things i will find out on my journey Thank you for your hard work 😊 (I'm bad in English, sorry for any mistakes)

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you for you comments ☺️

[@Phodography]

Good video Sir, look back in history and you will see that instant gratification is a commodity, as long as there are people who are willing to pay for the chance of instant success… there will always be someone selling it. Those who have the understanding that most things in life that are worthwhile, success will be achieved through hard work, patience and determination. Thanks again for a great video sir.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you for watching

[@olliknuuttila9633]

HC-B:s quote isn't anywhere near saying that after one has taken 10 000 photos one is a fully learned photographer. Not even literally and certainly not by meaning. It only says that it takes work, time and experience to be one.

[@daemon1143]

How proud am I of the progress I've made over the last 40 years? Not so proud that I want to show folks at large. Still, people who believe they've mastered something quickly, very often walk away and go on to their next field of interest.

[@davidskinner274]

You were really into vignettes 8_10 years ago. One piece of advice that resonates with me is lok for a natural vignette in the composition, one that is already there, and if you feel your composition needs one, then the best vignette is one that you don't know is there. A less is more approach. References, Len Metcalf, Simon Booth

[@johnclay7644]

nice opening quote informative content

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you

[@Bethos1247-Arne]

this is the most important video by Alex yet.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you

[@sethpotterphoto]

The timing of this video is interesting to me because I'm working on a video about my first year or so of photography. Back then I thought I was great but looking back on those images now I feel quite embarrassed by them. Dunning Krueger effect was in full swing for me at the time. I just can't win because I struggle with impostor syndrome these days.

[@juliansykes960]

There are no answers, only choices

[@davidskinner274]

My observation, Alex is you still "see" the same in portraiture and architecture, but your composition and aesthetics have improved

[@zigatretjak75]

Skilled photographer in 30 sec??? Me,me,me, take me😊

[@ThePurpleHarpoon]

Learning how to do photography lasts a lifetime, how can it not?

[@Call_Me_Mom]

There is a marked difference between my first frozen bubble shots and what I get now. And sometimes, with other people's frozen bubble shots I can even tell what time of day they shot them. That kind of thing takes time to develop ... and practice. Which I am woefully short of this year as it has been unseasonably warm. At least until now. After the snow stops it's supposed to get quite cold but then it will be too windy for bubbles. If I can get out to my favorite spots, there might be snowdrifts or even sarstrugi.

[@williamlong63]

My second career consisted of teaching students mathematics. Students wanted to learn the steps to solve a math problem, no more. I knew that the best way for them to learn was for them to gain some understanding of why the problem solving algorithm worked. So I tried to teach that also. It did not work well. They, rather stubbornly refused to believe that they needed to understand in that way. Oh well. These were not students that were very interested in math. They wanted the quick fix. However, shouldn't people wanting to learn photography be more interested?

[@SloopJohnBee-vq6dw]

I think I used to struggle with amnesia, can’t really remember 🤔🙄🤣 BTW it’s change tack, not tact Alex. It’s a sailing term originally 👍📸

[@stephan2774]

There is as saying, that you can‘t improve things, when they can‘t be measured. That‘s why there are lap times in racing, heart rate monitors in sport, KPI‘s in business and so on. Now the question, how to measure a picture? By size, by counting shades of grey or colours. Should one count pictures, like counting steps. I would say, its only oneself who can truly make the judgement, if that picture taken, turned out the way it was supposed to be. If others like it, fine and if not also fine. Its a bit different if you are professional, than you have to learn, how to please your customers. But still there is no measurement in physical data, that will tell if the picture is good. And thats what I really like about. Its me, my camera and my picture 😊

[@creative_cozmic]

Sadly people always want to sell you something. How to become a great photographer in a five minute video or pay for this course to learn how to quickly improve your skills. Developing skills will take time and patience and a lot of practice. As a street photographer, I've learned over the years how shooting in different environments, different light, weather, time of day all affect the photographs, none of which can be learned in a five minute video. Also, overcoming the anxiety of taking photos out in public where you fear drawing to much attention to yourself doesn't happen overnight either.

[@jpdj2715]

10,000 photographs in Henri Cartier-Bresson's time (and mine too)? Imagine a roll of film of 36 exposures. That's almost 280 cartridges of 35mm film. Or 833 rolls of 120 film (for "6*6" real medium format = 625 rolls of 120 film at 4.5*6 or 1,250 rolls 120 film for 6*9 format). Now shoot large format where each photograph is one sheet of film - 10,000 shots, 10,000 "films". Each "film" confection needs to be bought, shot, processed, test printed, have annotations made for culling, cropping, dodge/burn, gradation, and in colour a notion of desired tint. Now think of Yousuf Karsh who during his independent career held portrait 15,312 sittings, and at that (and some other circumstances) produced over 250,000 negatives. With your 20 fps mirrorless electronic (in sensor) shutter that's 3 hours and less than 29 minutes in "Continuous High" mode - 12 memory cards of 1TB at 50MB lossless RAW per shot. Karsh shot about all of his work with an 8" x 10" (203.2mm x 254mm) format camera. One that a "serious" large format shooter in the 1970s would look down on. Most often in "crop" mode using 4" x 5" (101.6mm x 127mm) cassettes/sheets of film. Using a Kodak Ektar prime that was a "nifty fifty" for 8"*10" : 14" (356 mm) f/6.3 Commercial Ektar made by the Eastman Kodak Company in 1947. (Yes, at 8"*10" your standard lens is ~375mm and Depth of Field is an issue and working without adjustments à la Mr. Scheimpflug is extremely impracticable.) Relative to 8"*10" your "full frame" camera has a crop factor of 7.5 or your APS-C camera of about 11 times. And if you want 50mm/1.2 DoF, you need 35/0.8 at APS-C or 376/9 (ceteris paribus). A few famous sitters in Karsh's shoots: Albert Camus Albert Einstein Albert Schweitzer Alberto Giacometti Alfred Hitchcock Andy Warhol Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli_AKA_Pope John XXIII Anita Ekberg Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu_AKA_Mother Teresa Ansel Adams Apollo 11: Neil A. Armstrong & Michael Collins & Edwin E. 'Buzz' Aldrin, Jr. Audrey Hepburn Bernard Shaw Brigitte Bardot Carl Jung Charles-Édouard Jeanneret_AKA_Le Corbusier Christian Dior Clark Gable Dwight Eisenhower Eleanor Roosevelt Elizabeth II, queen of England Elizabeth Taylor Ernest Hemingway Fidel Castro Frank Lloyd Wright George Bernard Shaw Georgia O'Keefe Gerard Depardieu Grace Kelly_AKA_Princess Grace Gregory Peck Helen Keller and Polly Thompson I.M. Pei Jacqueline Kennedy Jacques Cousteau Jan Smuts Jessye Norman Joan Miró John and Jacqueline Kennedy John F. Kennedy Karol Józef Wojtyła _AKA_ Pope John Paul II King Faisal Lord Beaverbrook Man Ray Marc Chagall Marcel Marceau Marian Anderson Martha Graham Martin Luther King Jr. Mikhail Gorbachev Mstislav Rostropovich Muhammad Ali Nelson Mandela - In 1990, Brian Mulroney greeted Mandela at the airport and accompanied him to the Château Laurier (Quebec City, CDN). We were waiting in the lobby and the introductions were made. When the session started an hour later, Mandela was warm and friendly but obviously very tired. Yousuf then told him a story about Pope John XXIII. He had asked the Pontiff, "How many people work in the Vatican?" The Pope smiled and replied, "About half." Mandela looked a little blank. Suddenly he got the joke, slapped the table, and roared with laughter. And, everything about the sitting changed. Pablo Casals Pablo Picasso Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip Robert Oppenheimer Sophia Loren Ulla Jacobsen W.H. Auden Walt Disney Winston Churchill Yousuf Karsh

[@chriscard6544]

After 30 years of photography, Im still seeking for how to look and how to see and the answer is like a song of Bob Dylan: blowin in the wind...( Cartier-Bresson lied, he picked up 3000 films for his russian trip, that means he was doing exactly as we do, lots of crap for one gem)

[@sharonhaasbroek7464]

The Bastille day photo was taken by you in 1952?

[@markgoostree6334]

I've posted a few times. Yes, my photography has been a bit low key for a while. My friend Kathy gave me a book for Christmas, It's just a Challenge book. One subject a week, I think I will have fun with this because I have to "focus" on the photo of the week. I've got the first three already so we'll see how this works out. Several are a little out of the norm for me. I hope what little skill level I have will be up to it!

[@dandann8237]

Outside of your confort zone can be a good thing, enjoy the challenges!

[@davidskinner274]

One has many light bulb moments along your photography journey

[@alunrees3056]

Hi Alex, a lot of people talk about “the process”. Defining what I hope to learn from asking “what is the process?”, or defining the question itself, (not the literal process, step one: do this. Step two: do that…) is challenging enough. And not processing the image process either (and yet “the process” within processing process is probably relevant somehow), which makes this thing even more confusing. Even this comment has gone a bit off piste. So with that in mind and the seemingly apparent lack of appropriate words in the English language (or my vocabulary at least), I put the question to you, what is this mythical thing you refer to as “process”?

[@christinebeckett7060]

It's a bit like those social media adverts that promise you that, if you use their software, you'll be at pro standard in moments. It's all a con, but sadly a lot of folk fall for it in their desire to be seen as a good photographer. Don't bother putting the work in, just open the software and use a filter. 😟

[@ThePurpleHarpoon]

I believe you can take a hundred great photographs before stepping out of your house.

[@bradzaruba9686]

I think I took the perfect photo, once, and I’ve been at it for more than fifty years. I’m sure I had taken more than 10,000 photos at the time.

[@ChunterInfo]

"We only celebrate big things" but the whole point of social media and micro blogging is being able to make a little two sentence post that says "I did something"

[@ooltimu]

I think the people who fall for those kinds of promises are the people who don't actually enjoy photography, but only want to take cool photos. I guess those courses capitalize on what people hate an that is the work and time that it takes to become good. It's the same people who want to lose weight tomorrow and gain muscle in a week.

[@JatekfejlesztesMagyarul]

Some of the shots are a little too close, at least for me, it was a bit weird and unusual also because this is a new thing.

[@Giles29]

Maybe we're looking for the wrong thing. There's actually two different definitions of perfection in philosophy and theology. One is a static state - this thing is the best that it can possibly be. The other is a dynamic state - it will never be the "best" that it can be because it is always improving, always moving toward the ideal even if it can't reach it. I think that we can only really achieve the dynamic state.

[@dangilmore9724]

If you try to do something fast, you only end up doing it half-fast. (See what I did there?)

[@jpdj2715]

Our thoughts go out to "photographers" (fluencers) that report having used a camera for a year, and shot 100,000 photos or more. Those are actually just "shutter clicks" from a process called "spray and pray". They may be able to recognise a nice photo on their computer display, but have no idea how to get one in the real world. Naive. Idiots. But earning some money from Ytoob-clicks seems to justify it all. We can make a 2*2 classification from "competence" (yes/no) and "aware" (yes/no) and generally they are in the (no,no) class.

[@paulmcnulty3198]

? Do you not really feel that like art, photography is very much in the eye of the beholder and there all photography is very much personal. And there we all learn in different ways depending the photography or art we want to want to do.

[@AmorLucisPhotography]

I'm getting mixed messages here: a) there are no shortcuts - it's a myth. b) They might exist, but it's better not to take the shortcuts.

[@JohnKrill]

You may be a speed reader but I'm not. Trying to read the captions was imposibe for me. The lure of the quick caption is surely misleading.

[@maryth4th]

Hi Alex, have you blocked users with Russian IP addresses on your website? If so, then that's just ridiculous.