William Loc: Mississippi

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Exactly !!!

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Just a coupla more phone sketches "werkin it"

Fun living in my "artcentric district"

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Mail dont move so fast in Rapid City S Dakoter

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Definitely Working the Scene

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Working the Scene FWIW

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rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

I have always looked at various perspectives and various framings, but actually take very few photos. I usually don’t need to take a shot in order to tell whether or not it will work. That is an advantage of starting in film.

William Loc: Mississippi

why not continue on@

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William Loc: Mississippi

zero out over again

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R.G. Loc: Scotland

If that's true it would mark you out as being very unusual. The point being made in the opening post and elsewhere is that (for most people) it's worth experimenting with composition, the reason being that compositions which looked good to the eye can be disappointing when captured in a photo, and compositions which didn't seem to be anything special at the time can turn out to be the best option for a photo. If you are completely immune to those mis-perceptions then you're the exception rather than the rule.

In a way this thread is a warning about making the assumption that your first shot of a scene will be the best shot possible. That warning is relevant regardless of how much forethought you put into the composition of that shot, or how much looking around or moving around you did beforehand. Again, if you're immune to making that erroneous assumption, you're the exception rather than the rule.

Using film taught us to be very careful and encouraged us to put a lot of forethought into things like composition, lighting, timing etc, but I think the mis-perceptions and false assumptions described above are a separate issue which aren't related to experience or forethought. For most people, making direct visual assessments (using our unaided eyes as opposed to using a viewfinder or viewscreen) leaves us susceptible to making those mis-perceptions. Using a viewfinder or a viewscreen no doubt helps but I would say they don't offer reliable protection from making those mis-perceptions.

In the days of film we didn't have viewscreens and making use of them wasn't part of the workflow. Not only that, we had to wait till the film was developed and printed before we knew what the resulting photos were like. Putting it another way, there was no immediate feedback as far as the resulting photos were concerned. That was the environment that we did our learning in. Have you considered the possibility that relying on your old instincts may now be less than optimal because those instincts are now out of date?

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Thaz why Polaroid was both big fun and a professional necessity. The trash can in the studio was always full of Polaroids, up thru 8x10. In location work it was important to share Polaroids with your client-assigned handler. It shifted responsibility off of our shoulders and onto the handler.

For me, rehesss claim has zearoh weight. Likewise Adams and his previsualization. I have never seen anything in his work that assures me Im seeing the ultimate possible take of an image. OTOH his previsualizing resulting *tonal quality* is NOT in question.

I never unbag my camera until the possible use of it is well considered. But that doesnt mean I anticipate my initial take will be the ultimate possible expression of my idea.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

I can imagine the size and weight of view cameras didn't lend itself to trying different compositions .

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

but I don’t belief they are ‘out of date’. One time my wife and I were touring the swamps where the pirate Lafitte had lived. For every one photo I took, another guy took a guy took a burst. The day was hot. The birds were hiding in the shade. It was windless. Nothing was moving. Nothing was changing much. As far as I could tell, this was just habit with him. There are times when digital has led to habits which are not helpful.

I believe in ‘working the scene’ - but with my eyes and my brain.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

Trying different compositions is a habit I would encourage. Multiple shots of the same composition can offer some protection from things like motion blur, but as you say, if there's nothing happening it's probably a waste of time.

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Self imposed hobbling of creativity in service of technical extremes. Precursor to UHH SOP. Strive for perfection, no worry that its boring.

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If you were out on the water, I might be that guy shooting bursts. Its a form of IS. I keep my camera on max fps, but with a 6 frames per burst limiiter. One or two frames tend to be noticeably steadier than the others. (First and last are usually the worst.)

Possibly Im using a bit more reach than you. Maybe I want way more DoF than you. Either or both of those means I really must address stability concerns. OTOH you would not have *heard* me doing bursts so you would never have known. Therefor, I was definitely not in any boat in some swamp with you ;-)

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

They had anchored boardwalks. No source of motion.

Miker999

What works for some, may seem odd to others. I have a Chronic Neurological Illness and have had to greatly modify how I use my camera. I'm sure others would think that I don't have any idea how to take a photograph. I don't care what people think. The important thing is that I can still get out with my camera and enjoy a craft that I've had had a love affair with since 1981. So...Enjoy your journey and keep shooting in the way that works for YOU.

JBuckley

Great suggestions....
Take the time to ....... shoot, then wait to see what develops within the lens in 60 seconds.
(Especially, with sunrises and sunsets).
The colors keep changing and the clouds that move in, (when you put your camera down),
can suddenly change from a great photo, to "the most exciting" shot of the week.

Hurry, and then stand and wait. (What our old company commander used to say to recruits in training.)