Why love Photography

Why Photography?

Before there were cameras a "portrait" was a painting that took long hours, several days, grueling weeks and tons of critical evaluation. No wonder the "master" artists of the days were just a wee bit wacky!

I like to think that Photography is an artistic evolution. First you must learn how to draw, then how to play with color, then learn to paint, then learn how to manipulate your paintings to appear realistic. People outside of the art world probably think that photography is the easiest form of the visual art world; however, I think it may be the most tricky to master.

What makes a good portrait painter is an artist that is able to capture a person's soul when painting. Some say they have to capture that look in the eye. The body posture, or perhaps the smirk on the lips. Sure realism painting is hard enough but just think about learning everything you need to know and practice painting every waking hour AND then going to a STRANGER and looking deeper than what is on the outside to try to paint that stranger's "personality" or even harder, "soul."

This is the role that photographers, especially portrait photographers now have to master and they must master it while looking through a small viewfinder and finding that "personality", the "soul," the look in one's eyes that make that person different from everyone else in the world.

That is the fun of this "hobby." Photographers must know how an angle can bring out the beauty of a single moment. A photographer must know how to watch their subjects and learn who they are in every second that ticks by. A photographer must learn how to make their subjects be comfortable and draw out the subject's personality. A photographer must know the exact timing to capture the height of the funny moments, the happy moments, the personal moments, the tranquil moments.

I love to capture the natural moments in between the posed smiles, and the tilted heads and the hands on the hips. I also find the challenge of making a moment like that the WOW factor for my subjects. It's the real moments, the raw moments, and the personal moments that I try to strive for. I like the challenge of making my subjects comfortable and becoming a friend. I like that I have to constantly be focused and evaluate my subject. Basically I like the challenge. It is what makes photography fun for me. Each snap is different, like a finger print. Each object changes and each picture tells it's own story. That is why I love photography! And it really does beat cleaning paint brushes ;)