top of page

Ben's Philosophy on Photography

Writer's picture: Ben DouglasBen Douglas

Often times I think that photography is interpreted as primarily ‘capturing a moment in time’ and is seen for the end product, the photo. I also think the term ‘Photographer’ gets thrown around alot in this social-media-camera-phone era. So, what is photography? And what is the difference between a Photographer and someone who takes a photo?


Firstly, let’s have a look at photography - Generally when we look at a photo, we look at it quite literally for what is within the image; the person, the object etc., however photography will usually tell a deeper story than that. A photo, beyond the image itself, is an expression of a persons creative thoughts - what did the photographer see in that moment? What did they feel? It may sound airy-fairy but these nuances are underlying in every photographers images and when these things are considered, it can really elevate how you understand imagery and what it can convey.




Here at Era, we create alot of imagery for small businesses to help show them to the world and most importantly tell a story as well. The way we do this is to essentially vanish and capture candid moments within the goings-on at that business in as much of an authentic and uninterrupted manner possible. Our images help you feel, hear, smell and see what it’s like to be there and know who they really are.


The term photographer means something different to everyone and there is no clear cut definition for it - so I’ll give you my impression and what I think makes me a photographer. So do I think anyone who takes photos is really a photographer? Yes and no. Technically photographer means someone who takes photos, but I think there is more to it - passion! Passion is what fuels creativity and will be what makes that person pick up their camera and get out there. As a photographer, I can tell you there’s so much more than the photo itself being the reason for what we do, it’s also about how it makes us feel and how that drives us and diferentiates us. As a photographer, you develop particular methods and values relating to how you take photos. Me - I never use a flash, I only work with surrounding light, even when I’ve done weddings during the low-light evening receptions. I feel as though flash brings too much forced lighting and hides the essence of a moment. I also don’t like completely staged imagery, I prefer candid and momentary shots. Even when doing fashion shoots I barely instruct specifically and give a lot of creative freedoms to the model and how they want to express themselves in the moment. I do things in a way that rewards me in real time while trying to show things in a new and more artistic perspective.


As I’ve mentioned, everyones ideas are different - but this is my philosophy on photography.

19 views0 comments

Comentarios


bottom of page