Inspiration for a theme

[fatoddsun]

I have been recently attending an online course called "next level photography", on one of the most famous online course platforms. I have to say that the course presentation is quite minimal, but there are few useful ways of looking at photography and many interesting hints. One of the "assignment" of the course was to find "inspiration" by looking at the work of some suggested photographers and try to "steal" their ideas, in order to make it into something different, and personal.

I have ended up going out to take pictures trying to show how different parts of this world move at different paces, on different frequencies. This is a feeling I always had as a kid when hiking on the mountains, or walking by the beach. I always thought that the mountains and the sea didn't care much about us because they live through geological eras, as opposed to few decades. One can find a similar feeling when comparing delicate nature manifestations, like a flower, or a tiny plant, with a solid building that looks like it will stay forever. But will it? Or will the plant overrun it by reproduction, surviving in a different creature once the building will be turned to dust? What does it even mean to cease an existence?

This theme of impermanence was quite tough to show on pictures, and I'm not entirely satisfied with what I could realise, but I think it's a good starting point for me.

I would be very happy if you could take a look and tell me what you think, and especially whether any of these pictures give you any emotion at all, or makes you think.

In general, finding a style and a message to express in our own pictures is a very challenging yet fascinating task for me. How do you approach - if at all - the research of a style for yourselves? Could you say exactly what is it that you like photographing, and why?

Here's the link to the series: https://www.damianolupiphotography.com/impermanence

Thank you!

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Damiano,

First let me say this is a tough assignment you have set yourself and perhaps one where what works for some people may not for others.

Having had a quick look through your series, I guess my thoughts are that because they are everyday objects/scenes, they don't convey much to me, perhaps a more thoughtful approach to titling would help. e.g. "Impermanence: Tree vs Buildings", or abstracting that, something that suggests their elemental nature, or time scale of speed of growth or existence. e.g. "Impermanence: Wood vs Stone" - the tree takes decades to reach maturity and in common with most living things, continues to develop until disease or lifestyle/environment curtails or kill it. The buildings develop rather quickly, about a year, then spend decades declining.

Personally, to illicit emotional feelings, I think I would try to take images that contain more 'drama' and less extraneous detail. I would try to show the 'battle' between the elements. A plant fighting to explode out of the cracks in the pavement (sidewalk).

Photographically, there are some I might not have composed or cropped as they are here, but who's to say which of us is correct.

As I said, this is a hard topic to cover and what resonates for some viewers, or yourself, may not for others - the important thing is to keep trying - you are off to a good start.

Hope that's helpful,
Dave

[fatoddsun]

Hi Dave,

thank you very much for your quick and thorough reply!

You made many very good points, and this is very helpful for me to understand what message really goes into my pictures and what only goes on in my mind.

The aim of this exercise was for me to just "get a feeling" of what working on this message could potentially involve. The pictures are all quite spontaneous, and I certainly did not invest much time or preparation for the shooting.
Nevertheless, I am willing to bring forward similar themes in my photography, and this first step already opens up to so many questions and decisions!

The plan is to keep exploring different variations and styles around this theme, and eventually settle on what better serves the purpose and gives me pleasure as a photographer.

Thanks a lot again!

Damiano

[Manfred M]

Let me start off by quoting Ansel Adams; "There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept". That is the first thing that strikes me about this series. You have suggested a common theme, but the one you have told us you are working to is not obvious to me either.

I agree with what Dave has written and he has given you some solid directions to explore. Your theme is wide open, so concentrate on a sub-set of that to give this series some continuity. Make sure that you clearly articulate what you are trying to say with your images to your viewers. If you are purely photographing for your own pleasure, then you are probably fine. If you are trying to share your vision with a wider audience (I suspect you are, given your website), then you need more clarity in order to communicate your intent with a wider audience. I think a slightly different approach might make your purpose more clear to your audience; a decaying old building in front of a mountain, a hulk of a grounded ship that is being torn apart by the elements, etc. might be a better way of articulating what you are trying to say.

Dave also alludes to a second part and that is just as important in the story you are trying to tell and that is how you have assembled the elements in your image. A combination of:

1. The technical execution of the image (both the camera craft and the post processing);

2. The way you organize the materials in the frame (use of space, eliminating distracting elements and composition); and

3. How the image impacts the viewer (mood, impact, subject matter and the originality of your approach) all play an important role in getting your story across to your audience.

Your style suggest you are moving in a contemporary, fine art direction. Study the works of both the classic masters and current photographers in the field and see how they are handling the areas I have mentioned.

[Shadowman]

I feel that you put a bit more thought into your other galleries, i.e. Monsters than the Impermanence series, although most of your images suffer from bad crops (either in camera or post-edit) and poor exposures. The Impermanence series only inspire the viewer to glance quickly, nothing in the series is very descriptive or reflective which would connect the viewer to your vision.

[xpatUSA]

Damiano, quite a philosophical theme!

This might be of interest:

https://www.scienceandnonduality.com...f-impermanence

Best,

[fatoddsun]

Thank you all for your priceless comments!

I have a lot to work on, I know, but the important part for now is to start moving in the right direction.
I take pictures for personal pleasure, yet I consider photography as a form of expression and communication, and thus I also like to share it with others (hence the website!).

I agree that I should focus on a sub-theme at a time, and concentrate on improving the quality of the images.
The hard bit for me now is to start from an idea and generate images, as opposed to just run after any visual interaction that I consider pleasant. The gallery "Monsters" that has been mentioned by Shadowman is in fact an a posteriori collage of few images that I'd taken in different situations and with no clear intentions. The exercise was then to look at a bunch of scattered images, select the ones that I liked the most, and put them together in newly created galleries.
I would like to revert this process, and go "hunting" for what I need, although I realise that probably the themes that came out spontaneously are the ones that I should somehow keep in mind first, maybe.

I have just uploaded a "spin-off" of the same theme of impermanence on my website, where I was trying to focus on one subject only and be more consistent in each of the shots. Here the focus is more on the marginality of our lives with respect to the bigger scale of nature. If you want to take a look, here's the link: https://www.damianolupiphotography.com/marginality

Manfred, I am also going through the work of the "masters" and... wow! Easier to look at than to internalise! : )

Anyway, thanks a lot everyone! I am very new on this forum and I've already gotten so many nice suggestions!
Hope I'll be contributing more soon too!

Damiano

[TonyW]

I am a few days late coming to this thread. To me, it is related to the recent thread "What is your biggest challenge?". Finding something that is meaningful to the photographer who has taken the image and then to others is a deeply philosophical task.

Having looked at your series on impermanence, I feel that I can relate very strongly to what you are doing. Each image shows some texture and/or shape that is meaningful. The fact that they do not follow the usual photographer's line of thought is a plus to me - it saves them from the "ho-hum, I have seen things like that many times before" feeling. While you need to pay attention to the photographic technicalities, the content and messages are much more important.

[fatoddsun]

Thanks Tony for your comment.
It's a fine line, isn't it? I guess it's good to keep one's own ideas and styles of expression, but at the same time we all have to use appropriate communication tools in order to pass that message. It's the same with language: different authors have different styles of writing and write about different content, but using the wrong syntax of making grammar mistake would make a book not understandable, nor enjoyable. Luckily in photography we are a bit more "free" from grammar, but I hope I passed the idea... : )
Here I feel like I have some ideas, but I still have to improve my "grammar" : P