Mustang1 wrote:
Artistic photography is using Photoshop to create an artificial image that did not exist at the time of shooting. Customers want what existed on location, not a phony staircase or a phony background from a computer. Be a photographer, not a computer operator.
IMHO, Artistic photography is one of the many deliberate decision & action a photographer can pursue & apply to accomplish a set goal or idea. Sometimes such goals need other tools besides the camera to allow the photographer to express his/her intent. Photoshop is one of such tools that enables expression and ideas to be created beyond the photograph.
Just like the camera which can be set or used to catch awful photos, more so can be done with PS. After all, it is just a tool and the outcome would always depend on the person wielding it.
As for the "customers", I have yet to meet someone who wish himself to be ugly on a photo. Many would ask for improvements or even request the photo to be erased because they do not look good on it.
Personally & in my work, I see Digital photography & Photoshop as left and right hands working together.
Granted there are many times only a camera is needed, i can not ignore the opportunities that PS provides.
As an example, I saw this image and captured it.
.
That's what I saw in my mind. In reality, this was the scene, PS allowed me to show you what I saw.
Another example is this photo:
In this case, PS enabled me to show a better result than what I captured,
because even when I did my best, the circumstance & the limitation of my lens only allowed for this image.
Finally this image:
Sure, the new topiary is not real, but I stand firm that adding it did not take any essence away.
It still is a much better photo than the original capture in which an element, the dying plant can not be avoided.
They are all just tools. The outcome depends on the person's decision when using them.