What makes a great photo? Everyone has an opinion on what makes a great photo. Perfect focus, stunning lighting, tightly controlled depth of field, amazing subject, the list goes on. But what REALLY makes a great photo? What one measure can be applied to every photograph ever taken to determine which are "great?"
All too often this is the idea that gets stuck in a photographer's head as he or she critiques their own work. Its an awful cycle of self-doubt that begins the first time you show a photograph you love to someone and get a bad, or worse dismissive, reaction. We begin to wonder what we are doing wrong? Why couldn't we see our photograph was garbage before we showed it to someone else? What's wrong with US?
Take a deep breath and relax. I'm going to tell you the secret that it takes so many of us years to discover...and some never really understand.
You are doing nothing wrong. There is nothing wrong with you. The one, and only one, factor that makes a photograph great is its ability to create an emotional connection with a viewer. If that one viewer is you then it is still a great photograph. If your photograph makes that emotional connection with a million people wonderful but its not the number of viewers that counts, its the reaction of the current viewer. Each and every time your photograph is viewed it is judged again by a completely different set of emotional rules than by the previous viewer. You will never connect with them all. Strive to connect with one, just one and you'll have changed the world for a moment.
Comments
I like your blog and I’ve never commented on an article (other than politics!). However, I ask myself that same question over and over. Why does this person love it and another hate it? And it’s worse when you do a wedding which turns out beautiful
or a portrait and the client hates the way they look, or they simply hate the pictures and you can’t figure out why. So to put this issue to rest I think your blog is what we can hope for when shooting. That one moment that captures emotion, juxtoposition of ideas, mystery, or anything that evokes emotion in the viewer is a good photo. It is just like painting. I might love impressionism, but why? Some people hate it. Maybe it reminds them of some subconscious memory that makes them uncomfortable. It is so subjective that I have come to the realization (after a painful experience) that we, as photographers, or I like to consider myself a “magical memory maker” of sorts, must have an almost exact idea of what the client wants to see in their photos. I ask them to bring in some of their old favorite photos. What side of their face do they think photographs the best? I also ask them to peruse through magazines, rip out pictures of what they like, or send me websites that may have a certain style they want in the editing process. This has helped me greatly in my professional work. I also feel more confident with the outcome. Thanks for a great blogsite. -Adele
I totally agree with you Liz. Of course there are all types of rules of composition, lighting, sharpness, etc., but it is so subjective. I think your post will help some people relax a bit more and not worry about whether their work pleases everyone!
All the best,
Andrew
Strive to connect with one, just one and you’ll have changed the world for a moment.
I love this Liz. Agree with your whole opinion, but this last sentence is spot on.
Thanks
Stephanie
This is just what I needed to understand! I’m beginning my pet portrait photography business, after many friends have encouraged me to do so. But a few of them just aren’t impressed with my work. Thanks so much for enlightening me. You’re so right about the emotional connection.
Wonderful thought provoking post. Thanks
Wonderful article. I blogged about this myself just last week, we came to the same conclusion! Great minds think alike!
i absolutely agree with your views,you are rightly said that the emotional connection between photograph and viewer.sometimes my photographs may not follow the rules of photography but to take a good photo – “i must be in love with the subject of the photographs”.
your suggestions are always helpful and encouraging.thanks a lot-joysree
Very well said, Liz. That’s why I have to go through my photos 2 or 3 times. I would add not to evaluate your photos why your sick or feeling bad. But maybe it might make you feel better. I once was given this advice. Compose your photos as though a person would want to put themselves right there right now. Of course, that would probably only work for Nature/scenics. Constructive criticism is a great tool to use. But never let it ruin what you think about your work.
Thanks, Liz. Sometimes we work so hard at getting everything “right” in the rules of photography, not that they are not important for a reason, but we forget the joy of what we are seeing or how much we love and enjoy the subject ourselves. The creativity that goes into photography gets lost if we over analyze our work and allow others judgment of our work to keep us from bringing forth our own style. Ansel Adams said,” There are always two people in every picture, the photographer and the viewer”. He also said, ” A great photograph is one that expresses how one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed”. That’s emotion the person with the camera is feeling and seeing through the lens that others might not have the same feeling for. You summed all of this up with your wonderful post.
Hi Liz, you’ve just made a big change in me. I never knew and thought of such thing. But now I realize that I’ve had some great photos already and I’m happy for that. I can recall there were many people who loved and expressed their emotions. I also never knew specifically what caused the photo that made my viewers happy.
I absolutely agree as well! Wonderful point of view about our emotions… Thanks for the article!