CloudyCoastPhotography wrote:
I absolutely agree!! But for me, easier said than done. Let me explain. I’m by nature a “rule follower.” I’m the guy that reads instruction books for everything. I’m the guy that, in the beginning of learning photography, read a million articles and memorized/recorded in a notebook all these rules. I “needed to know” what shutter speed, ISO, aperture, white balance setting, focus mode, etc was used for what picture. If I was planning a portrait in sunlight, shade, indoors, etc, I had to have all the numbers and settings according to the “rules.” So I would pull out my notebook and take the photo. Very mathematical and to be honest, often very boring. The photo would be “correct,” according to said rules. And people would say “huh, what a nice photo. Yawn.” I had to “learn” to break the rules. To use them as a guide, a starting point, but to then deviate from them. It’s tough for a guy like me; I’m a chemist by trade and we science geeks follow rules. But I made myself do this and realized there is an art to all of this photo taking; that somewhere between numbers and settings, rules and artistic ability, lies great photography. So yes indeed, you have to bend and break these rules! Thank you for posing this question; it makes photographers think, and rethink, and that leads to excellent photos.
I absolutely agree!! But for me, easier said than ... (
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Yes, I agree... I'm new at this and without the experimentation of so many photographers before me having learned what works best, I would fumble and shoot pictures with incorrect settings of which I would ware out my delete button because the pics were unacceptable even to the untrained eye, and not understand why the pic didn't look appealing. Beginning with a rule standardizes what is known to produce a good photo but then a bit of a shift in my settings may produce a great photo and the starting point was the rule. Even though I tend toward rule breaking I need to start with the rule and practice there until I understand how a shift in my setting would affect the final photograph. Then there is the subject, space, light, distance, color and my eye and a few other at the moment things that make a final decision as to a subtle setting that might produce a superb photograph. Phew... that wore me out!