Expectations

This photo blog has been a very interesting experience. It has lead to some personnel growth and has taught me some unlikely lessons. I'm an engineer by trade and thus have spent years exercising left-brain activities (heck, I use a spreadsheet to plan vacations!). I've never considered myself an artist. Photography started as a hobby for me, a way to record memories. It was never meant to make art. So, I was so surprised and pleased on that day that a film developer asked to display one of my photos on their wall. What a kick! Still, coming back from a vacation and having a $200-$300 bill to develop all the film lead me to eventually start to leave the camera in the closet.

I decided to start the blog last year, after I took the plunge and bought a digital SLR. I reckoned that it would be a good way to journal my attempt to becoming a better photographer, and to share stuff with friends and family. I certainly did not expect other people to read it!

I was looking for feedback when I started posting photos in public areas. It was a bit frightening when I first did. I was hoping for constructive criticism, but fearing ridicule or, worse, disinterest. I was ecstatic when I received some criticism. I learned a lot from it. The linked post is a result of that.

Then, I discovered the concept of photo memes. For awhile, I just lurked. There are so many people out there with interesting stories, beautiful poems, and gorgeous photos! I learned lot by lurking. When I stopped lurking and decided to contribute to a meme, I was, again, full of trepidation. But the response to my first post was, to me, overwhelming.

That’s when I learned that having a audience is fun. I’ve never liked being a center of attention, so, this surprised me! However, I also found that this brought with it a certain amount of pressure. After that first post to Skywatch Friday, I wondered what I’d post next. Looking through my collection, I saw nothing that I thought was as good as that one. I felt pressure to perform well. I’ve used that perceived pressure as a goad to get out and take a lot pictures, try need styles of shots (portraits, for example) and new techniques. I believe that I am a much better photographer than I was 10 months ago when I started the blog.

This, finally, brings me to this photo. A few days ago, I posted a photo. In that post, I mentioned that I took another that is one of my favorites, and that I’d post it today. The response to that was amazing. Now I’m obliged to post this one. What’s interesting is that in the past, I’d be nervous about the implied expectations, now, not so much. If nobody else likes it, I still like it, and I guess that’s what really matters. But, all you readers have helped me to gain some confidence in “my art”. I don’t yet consider myself an artist, but perhaps, I’m getting closer. Thank you all very much!

About this image: I saw the rays of the setting sun striking the tops of the grass and saw a cool photo. I took a number of shots, different compositions, and camera settings, etc. One of them I took with a slower shutter speed to capture the waving of the grass. I got the blurring of the grass in the foreground, but it didn' look right. But I still liked to overall image. So, I applied the Orton Effect which softens the overall focus. In the end, the result of that helped the image convey what I felt when I was standing there.

Sorry for the long post - I didn't expect that when I started writing :)

Be sure to visit Scenic Sundays or other great scenes.