A Personal Aesthetic?

Anouilh

There is one question that has come to puzzle me. Why does "Camera Club Aesthetics" get so much attention, for good or bad, on photography chat rooms?

I have never joined a camera club and now wonder if many clubs may not be a bit like the local amateur dramatic groups, with a star system and a vastly disproportionate objective correlative..

This site discusses the Arty versus Camera Club aesthetic.

http://markbrimblecombe.wordpress.com/2009/01/01/what-is-fine-art-photography/

There is room for everybody, I think and I wonder about the limitations of photography as art in any case.

Perhaps a thread about how individuals here approach taking a photo could help us appreaciate one another's photos more clearly and also help newcomers who are still trying to work out the basic functions on a camera?

I tend to see a photo as a frozen moment in a very busy day, a bit like a still from a film.

AnCatDubh

Well, I suppose to kick the ball in on this one -

Just saw this thread and won't have a chance to read the linked article until later, but on first reaction, I personally am still at a point of going through phases as I explore more and more of photography. I'm still soaking up what information I find and what advice I can glean from either people responding to anything I type online or from what others type on that which I have not been involved with. I get frustrated / surprised as much as the next guy/gal, but i'm getting there (where ever 'there' is).

I seem to return quite often to some genres but couldn't say that i've settled. I think it's all part of the personal photographic journey that everyone is on at some point. That journey doesn't particularly follow the same track and the end point can often be different. I had an interesting weekend which had me immersing myself in a number of kinds of photography and I loved it all. One part of the wekend's photographic journey started out in one direction and ended up in a completely different place altogether (perhaps I should install satnav on my camera).

/perhaps I should have actually read the linked article

ThOnda

I know that I will regret that sooner or later, but here are my few cents. Purely my personal point of view.
The Camera Club is for me the opportunity to meet people, interact with people, see other peoples' work, see reactions on my work and on other work. Yes, there is always some main stream of graphics and photography, represented by the bureaucratic machinery of some distinctions or whatever it is.
I grew up photographically in a club, where were only few rules.

• For the first - be honest about photography. People are showing their pictures to get feedback. Even if you don't like the picture, explaining it in straight and fair way is the most valuable thing that you could give the creator of the picture.
• For the second - listen to other peoples' opinions, but you don't have to follow them.
• And the third and maybe the most important rule - do your photography. Do not produce (create) pictures with intention to make them well received by the targeted audience (camera club, judges, committee...)

Camera club is a place of opportunities, where we all can gain more than we give. On voluntary basis. The more you give, the more you receive. And that includes camera skills, processing skills, information on exhibitions, artists, exhibiting opportunities and even our beloved gear.

I cannot wait to see some of you tomorrow in DCC

Anouilh

Quite some time back there were references on the Photography Forum to Walter Benjamin. Anybody who likes his writing might find this useful:

http://books.google.ie/books?id=4h0SHP4i7hIC&pg=PA175&lpg=PA173&ots=9uVPmPZcvL&dq=benjamin+convolute+photography

I would be interesting to know what subjects most caught your attention, AnCatDubh. I mostly find myself following where light is falling at any given moment, which means I do not often set out with a set purpose but wander about looking for whatever is best illuminated at any point. Taking photos in a room with spots of lamplight at night can be interesting, for instance.

OctavarIan

Like AnCatDubh I'm sort of wandering around different ways of photographing. Overall though I know I'm probably heading towards the 'fine art' end of the spectrum, in that I'm seeing things in terms of lines and shapes and light instead of what is actually happening in front of me. That said what I consider my 'best' shots still are very subject driven. Hopefully one day I'll be good enough to meld the two

Anouilh

The nature of digital technology has influenced how I look at photography.

A new language of perception is needed to interpret what we see.

http://www.artandculture.com/categories/362-phenomenology

It's interesting to note that representational photography continues to be the most popular and commercially successful on the World market.

Does this affect the work of professionals or do they continue to try to make new work that keeps pace with scientific discovery and new perceptions?

Anouilh

OctavarIan wrote: »

Like AnCatDubh I'm sort of wandering around different ways of photographing. Overall though I know I'm probably heading towards the 'fine art' end of the spectrum, in that I'm seeing things in terms of lines and shapes and light instead of what is actually happening in front of me. That said what I consider my 'best' shots still are very subject driven. Hopefully one day I'll be good enough to meld the two

I would be very interested to know more about your photos, if you have time to share them here. I keep going back to composition and had a very interesting discussion with friends recently. I think that anybody can become a photographic artist, with training, as there are tricks of the trade. Others disagreed and made a claim for there being a "photographer's eye".

This thread has some good ideas:

http://blah.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055322054&page=5


Also, I watched the programmes on RTE and was very taken with David Farrell's investigation into what is absent in photos and the subject of loss.

http://www.source.ie/artists/artistsF/artfardav.html

This book fits very well within the problems faced by any photographer who wishes to communicate at an emotional level:

http://books.google.ie/books?id=aYkNWSjgNGkC&pg=PA1&lpg=PP1

I could not physically bring myself to buy Mr Farrell's book when I came across it in a bookshop, once I realised it treated such a sad subject.