Beyond the obvious

Spurn Point lighthouse. Please click on the image to see the larger version. There are two fundamentally different approaches to photography. Identifying which type of photographer you are could help you focus your approach and remove inner creative conflicts that you were not even aware of. You have to ask yourself whether you prefer observing and capturing what you see happening in front of your lens or do you prefer to control your subject matter and direct the action to produce the result you envisage? Once you decide which type of photography best suits your temperament, creative approach and mindset you can focus your energy on playing to your strengths. Don't struggle against your nature. Go with it. The split between the two fundamental approaches is of course as old as photography itself. On one side we have the photojournalists, documentary photographers, street photographers and landscape photographers out to capture that special moment. And on the other side we have com...

What tags would apply to you as a photographer? It's a fascinating question. In a sense the tags are your photographic DNA, or in marketing speak your brand. People who know how diverse my work is may wonder what tags would apply to me as a photographer. I wonder too. Different editors and art directors will no doubt have their individual set of tags depending on what they use my work for and how they perceive it. I don't think that I can be easily pigeon holed. But maybe I'm missing something. There's a very interesting article on one of my favourite blogs which you should read if you're interested in how photographers are perceived by photo editors. I've had a go at picking my own tags: color black & white digital available light location portrait photojournalist fine art captured moment quirky real people I'm curious to know how you would tag my photographic work. Please leave a comment or send me an email . Many thanks, Paul