Here's Part 2
Photo Buddies (Why Work Alone)Shooting with a group is fun. There are advantages and disadvantages shooting with a group. For a newbie photographer I think is ok but if you are taking photos as a hobby for many years, I do not see any benefits with it. I'd rather have a lunch date with my wife than a bromance affair (joke)
Date with the wife during her lunch break. A short brake from a sweaty city photo walkI'll list the advantages and disadvantages below
AdvantagesGain more confidence in a group - Mas safe kapag mas marami lalo na when shooting in dodgy areas. While thugs and thief nowadays work with numbers, kung mas marami kayo mas safe kahit pa sa lugar ng mga durugista kayo pumunta. But you can be safe working alone too, just follow my tips on my first post.
Learn something new - This is an advantage for newbies. Shooting with a group lets you ask questions especially technical questions such as camera settings, composition, etc... Information already available in countless books and online resources.
Make new friends (and possibly connections) Plus points here, self explanatory.
Grow with the group. Constantly shooting with a group allows you to grow with them in terms of skills and creativity. This could be good or bad for you as a photographer.
DisadvantagesBromance - LOL
I'm always bothered by this. I used to think that there's something
girly about photography. It's not as
manly as head banging, trading licks or playing heavily distorted guitar solos on stage. This is the reason why it took a couple of years before I took photography as a serious hobby. If your group wants to shoot flowers and muscular sweaty men all day, ditch the group bro!
An excuse for porn - well not in photo walks but in photo sessions. There's
nothing wrong with nude photography as long as it's art. Many older men share cost of a nude model and a place to do a photoshoot.
Mahirap basahin ang intentions ng isang tao. Does he want to shoot art or mamboso lang? I have a friend whose family has been broken because of this. I almost joined Matt Granger's photo session here in Sydney but was having second thoughts. I asked my wife about this and she did not mind except for the hefty fee I'm about to blow away. My philosophy with nude photography is,
kung hindi mo kayang maghubad sa harap ng iba, don't do it! And
consult the wife first if you really have to do it.
Learn bad techniques - this is my main concern. When I joined a group a few years back, I was told to set my exposure compensation to -1 and to shoot at aperture priority. While the person who taught me this took great photos, it took me years before I was able to undo what he taught me.
A group can also influence you as a photographer and this can be a good thing as well as a bad disadvantage. I have another friend who is into fantasy photography and whenever he posts a photo of his work on Facebook, I can't help myself but cringe. When I peeked at his group's photos, it all looked the same. Kaya pala. I suggested to him to read a book of Annie Leibovitz but fell on deaf ears.
Annie Leibovitz Disney SeriesBuddies will slow you down. Get into the Zone!!! - If you value your time and want to grow your skill as a photographer, you should be taking photos and not socialising with other photogs. You do not want to miss
"The Zone" and more often you will miss an opportunity of a great shot when you're with a group.
What is The Zone?Mahirap paliwanag. I think it's the
adrenaline rush similar to playing guitar solo onstage and hitting the right notes every time. It's the
feeling of natural high and every photo you take is worth keeping. It is
a moment when you love what you are doing and the inspiration is all around. This is why I go out every week and think of photography every day.
And then there's
the Decisive Moment.
What is the Decisive Moment? This was coined by Henri Cartier-Bresson which he explained as a "split second of genius". This is the "
Kodak moment", a shot that you will not be able to reproduce again (unless you hire models and stage it, but again that's cheating!). This is more connected to street photography. You can check more about this here -
http://erickimphotography.com/blog/2010/07/01/%E2%80%9Chow-to-masterthe-decisive-moment%E2%80%9D/Jack Simon - http://jacksimonphotography.comThe following photos were taken during the Sydney Vivid Festival 2014. There's lot of photographer during the event (with their fancy DSLRs and lenses of course) and while they are shooting the
obvious subjects (see
https://www.flickr.com/groups/vividsydney2014/) like the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge, etc....,
i turned my camera the other way around and shoot the people enjoying the festival. I think I cannot retake the same photos again which makes them valuable to me. They might not be the greatest photo in the world but at least its different from the thousands of photos taken that night making my photos
unique IMO.
My wife and daughter was with me during the festival but got separated with them in the crowd. By then I was free and able to get into
The Zone and took the photos above. I was happy, inspired and free. Later we got reunited and headed home, me having a big grin on my face
And to close this post, remember that
photography is a one man show so better train yourself to do the craft alone. Gain confidence by working alone and conquer your fears of the street. Learn from your own mistakes and do not catch bad habits from other photographers.