Can artistic vision be learned or is it more of an instinct that you either have or you don't (Page 2): :sm24: :sm24: :sm24: I am married to a southpaw, and we have a son with the same...

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Linda From Maine wrote:

A fascinating read that will open your eyes in man... (show quote)

I am married to a southpaw, and we have a son with the same gift.

jjanovy Loc: Lincoln, Nebraska

WOW!!! What an elegant essay/question! Now, my own personal response, from a perspective of being married to an artist for 56 years, having taken thousands of photographs and done hundreds of paintings, many of which have sold, and written 25+ books, all the time also living a career as a university scientist. My response: art is in the mind of the beholder and in the mind of the artist. YOU are the one who is trying to capture something from nature, or from the built environment, or from the people you encounter. YOU are the one who decides what YOU want to do, artistically, regardless of what anyone else thinks about your work. That is the major take-home from a study of art history, and a study of artists' lives, and if you are actually taking a lot of pictures, you are acting like an artist whether your friends and relative consider you one or not. RE cameras: I have several, Nikon, Canon, Olympus, and Pentax. Use the equipment that suits your time and space at the time. I carry a Canon SX700 all the time, but own a Canon SX50 for travels where weight is severely restricted, and use my Nikons (D3300 and D610) along with various lenses when I'm in a situation where they are the correct equipment and I can use them comfortably. Focus (intellectually) on your own sense of what the world should be like, what you personally want to derive from your art, and do it. Good luck!!

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

Gene51 wrote:

I am married to a southpaw, and we have a son with the same gift.

My parents say I threw toys out of my playpen with my left hand, so they didn't fight nature - but no one would ever confuse me for an artist {I am an "intuitive", rather than a "logical", problem solver however}. Our younger daughter is also left handed.

nauticalmike

Thank you very much to all who posted responses to me> I am grateful for all of the information that you shared with me.

On another note, It looks as though it pays to write along drawn out post because this is one of the first threads that I have seen in this forum that doesn't have even one stupid smart ass remark from some of the ass hats that frequent this site.

dsmeltz Loc: Philadelphia

Linda From Maine wrote:

A fascinating read that will open your eyes in man... (show quote)

Another good book (which I read and used around the same time I read "Drawing") is "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron. You can learn more at http://juliacameronlive.com/

brucewells Loc: Central Kentucky

Linda From Maine wrote:

A fascinating read that will open your eyes in man... (show quote)

Thanks for sharing this!!

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

nauticalmike wrote:

Thank you very much to all who posted responses to me> I am grateful for all of the information that you shared with me.

On another note, It looks as though it pays to write along drawn out post because this is one of the first threads that I have seen in this forum that doesn't have even one stupid smart ass remark from some of the ass hats that frequent this site.

It's the topic. The gearheads are out of their league if they can't quote specs, measurements and other stuff that is easily found with google. Your topic requires thought, compassion, understand, artistic sensibility, etc etc etc.

happy sailor Loc: Ontario, Canada

Linda From Maine wrote:

A fascinating read that will open your eyes in man... (show quote)

Thanks for the link Linda, I enjoyed reading it. All the best forgers use the upside down method to copy signatures because it becomes a drawing to do rather than trying to write like someone else, give it a try you will be amazed.

To the OP, I would like to be artistic and occasionally I grab one of those shots that has to be printed and hung on the wall. It may be the emotion in a child's face, something that just catches my eye. I am not good at finding an artistic shot with every subject, a friend of mine can take a photo of a door knob and it looks great. But I keep trying!

I am glad that you have the strength to live on try new things no matter what life has thrown at you, I applaud your strength and wish you all the best.

and yes, I think you can learn to be more artistic!!

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

nauticalmike wrote:

I have no artistic ability nor do I even have the ability to understand what makes one better than the other, and as such I can not tell a good photo from a bad one, within reason. Perhaps to be more accurate I should really say that I can not tell a good one from a great one. Be forewarned that the rest of this post is all about me. Just to give some insight into my experience I will tell you the following. When I was 9 I inherited a newspaper and I kept most of the photography equipment they had. I had a good negative projector for printing pictures, along with a Yashica, a Pentax, a Miranda and lastly a GAF along with various lenses light meters, filters and etc. They were all 35mm SLR's from the 60's and early 70's. I taught myself black and white developing and printed my own pictures, but I never liked any of my pictures. It was less than a decade before I lost interest in photography due to my lack of ability. I knew how to use the cameras from a mechanical standpoint, but that is all. Then after I got older and began working as an engineer I purchased a few digital point and shoot cameras to document what I worked on for my customers and for my own records, but nothing that was meant to be artistic. It was mostly just pictures of damaged machinery and equipment components and cracks in decks, bulkheads, and hulls and other various problems that I was hired to correct, or discrepancies that I found in the course of my work that needed to be repaired before they caused additional problems along with after photos of the same items after I performed the necessary repairs. Although I suppose that from a macro perspective some of them might have possessed artistic qualities, it was never my intention. Recently I bought a D5300 and a D3400 and my hope is to learn everything I can about using all of their features, and then maybe if I am lucky some of the photos that I take will be worth keeping. I do not expect to be able to consistently create photos that anyone would want to hang on a wall, but I am hoping that someday I may be able to look through the viewfinder and think, "I might even keep this one." I'm not going to get my hopes up though because I have very little natural artistic ability or imagination outside of the realm of engineering. I can make technical drawings but anything else but stick figures is beyond me. I lost my soul mate in 2008 which broke my heart, and I broke my back in 2010 which left me paraplegic and has really changed my perspective on just about everything and I now experience emotions that I never felt before, mostly just extreme sadness, but I do feel emotions now where before I was basically limited to feelings of only happiness and anger. I mention this because in my experience artistic people are also very emotional. I would be interested in learning to see the world with an artistic vision and be able to capture images that makes someone, anyone, stop and say "wow, that picture is really cool," if that is even possible... And now back to my question, can I learn to take amazing photographs or is that really only possible for individuals with brains that are wired with an inherent natural artistic ability?

I have no artistic ability nor do I even have the ... (show quote)

Mike, after writing all that self analysis you’re probably better already!!! LoL
Yes, Photography is like anything else, there is talent, and there is just getting the job done.
It’s no different than being a painter or a brain surgeon. Do you think every brain surgeon out there is talented? Of course not, most learnrned in school what they needed to know to get the job done and do just that. A FEW are actually talented! BUT, what they all have in common is having gone to school to learn the craft.
Photography is no different. Most are self taught and just going through the motions and doing and commenting without really knowing anything.
School at least gives them the foundation to free their minds and eye and apply what they learned to be good or revolutionary photography, but how does one learn what that is?
So you CAN be taught, no you can’t be made talented but unless you’re a door knob, you WILL learn what pushing the edge of the envelope looks like and can then apply it.
So yes you can be taught to be the best that you can be, but not to be more talented than you already are.
Olympic runners are ALL, and I mean ALL at the pinacle of talent pool but VERY hard work will make them better than the guy next to them that has the same talent.
You want to get to the next level, go to school(real school, not internet school), you want to stay the same, just shoot, shoot, shoot, and you’ll have lots more of what you already have!!!
You might find this old post I started some years ago of interest! Good luck
SS
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-240365-1.html

Bobspez Loc: Southern NJ, USA

I definitely agree with your statement "So yes you can be taught to be the best that you can be, but not to be more talented than you already are." Often our talents are not revealed until we get into a new endeavor. But there are some indications when you do get into something new, that can indicate your possible level of talent. One is an overwhelming desire to absorb knowledge, solve problems and immerse yourself in the subject. The second is how fast you climb up the learning curve and surpass the expertise of others. At some point it either becomes a chore or a passion or stays an occasional hobby pursuit.

I was lucky at the age of 42 to get into a profession in computers that I was immersed in as a hobby for years and became very good at it and made a very good living and retirement out of it. But it was never just a job, it was always a challenge and enjoyable and even thrilling. It never felt like hard work, it was just an endless series of puzzles and challenges which I enjoyed solving. I believe I had a real talent for the job which was allowed to come out and blossom. And my employers were happy to leave me alone and pay me well to get the job done. At the same time I've had enjoyable hobbies for which I was just passably talented. I enjoy them but am not great at any of them. So my talent in those areas is as a passably competent amateur.

Regarding school, I think it is good for learning the basics, and can be a fun way to interact with others and improve basic skills, or it can be a crushing experience depending on the teacher, and also sometimes your classmates. While it can teach you the basics it really can't give you more artistic vision or talent or excellence than you innately have. The Beatles never studied music, nor did Eric Clapton or Steve Winwood, but there are thousands of music school graduates playing in bars or regional orchestras and/or teaching music in schools and giving private lessons.

SharpShooter wrote:

Mike, after writing all that self analysis you’re ... (show quote)