Why do we keep shooting ‘plastic’?
Let’s face it, we’re a society with non-stop consumption of everything that’s temporary, quick and easily disposable - from fashion, music, food, relationships and all the way to art.
So, as a model and photographer who has worked with people on 1 to 1 basis as well as in workshops, I could not help but to point out just how imminent this is in photography. I want this to get people thinking about what they are creating or thinking of creating, I want people to simply start thinking before doing.
So, here is a collection of my personal thoughts on why we keep creating art that is so disposable, forgettable and why it doesn’t give us any satisfaction.
I am referring mainly (but not exclusively) to personal photography not commercial jobs.
1. Peer pressure
Have you ever been convinced to go out, when you really do not feel like it, or to have just one last drink, until next thing you know you’re in the bar restroom looking down on the floor, while someone is holding your hair. You feel terrible afterwards, paying the price of those few hours of fun and excitement. And the same happens in photography:
We give in too easily and follow what others around us do, think and want to see. If we are a part of a camera club, it is inevitable we’ll start creating work that is highly praised by the jury or whatever body it is that reviews the work. It’s likely that the guy on the jury will have a thing for women in swimwear this week, or perhaps he’ll change it to pet photography.
Either way, you’ll start creating imagery that’ll be appreciated and praised by people whose opinion should never matter in what is your personal view on art and photography. Furthermore, it is likely that the local camera club will have been stagnant in its views for years or even decades, so you will end up trying to please people who might still be stuck in the 80’s. Do not let peer pressure bring you and your work down to a level, that’s way below what you can and should achieve in your development as an artist.
Learn the trade and tips, but do not give in to peer pressure in regards to how you see photography. Similarly, on model and photographer portfolio websites, such as Model Mayhem, Purpleport and others, will make it difficult for you to ‘shine’ unless you follow the unwritten rules of what the local ‘clique’ has set. It might be that a large number of people enjoy glamour images or they might be hyped about female due shoots, either way it is likely to affect what many people shoot. I have seen people shoot for ‘loves’ or ‘likes’, and when they fail to receive any they would post a question on the forum asking ‘has my photography gone worse, because I have not received as many likes lately?’
Seeing this time and time again has really made me question: why do we keep shooting for other people and not ourselves? Shouldn’t the authors satisfaction come first, before receiving praise from others?
And why would other photographers’ opinions matter that much to you anyway?
I myself have stopped caring about what other photographers think of my work. I have received criticism where I did not think it was applicable, and I have put it behind me. I always shot for myself, but at least now I stopped caring what others might think of my work.
2. Disposable media
Everything our media bombards us with is disposable- fame comes and goes, fashion changes every 5 minutes, trends are here one day and gone the next. So, if we start producing work that is ‘trendy’ today, it is likely to sit on your external hard drive untouched just a year after.
When we create something that has the 5-min wow factor, it will not last and it will not be remembered, because we create it thinking about the latest trends not because it’s something that we might be truly interested in or passionate about.
There is iconic imagery, that sets the author apart from everyone else by creating their own path, and then there’s disposable media that’s created by those who want to be like everyone else. Do not let yourself fall in the trap of quick trends, but instead create work that is contemporary and will be everlasting. Easier said than done? I know, it’s not easy but that’s why sometimes it’s worth working on someting for more than half an hour. Good things do not always come fast and easy, and same goes with decent art!
3. We are not artistic
It’s not the nicest thing to hear or think about, but sometimes we do not produce good art because it’s not in us. There are people who have imagination and the ability to see something as a finished product/project, and then there are people who are great equipment operators and gadget lovers. The latter might be great news for electronics industry, but not so much for the art. There’s nothing wrong with being more rational than artistic, but it also means our art market is saturated with people creating work that appears good at first: great light balance, nice composition, correct crop, but no soul. No emotions. Nothing thought provoking. Nothing to make the viewer come back for the second time.
The responsibility also lies within the viewer, because we have plenty of people who will highly applaud this type of work because they fail to understand anything that goes beyond the correct colour balance and sharpness. They will not be bothered about what the image says about the photographer or what feelings the image invokes, they will want something quick, easy, sharp and colourful to look at because they cannot waste any more time on it than that. If the image has all that, then there’s nothing else required in their opinion.
4. We are lazy
This ties in with my previous points. We are a lazy society with a few exceptions, but the overwhelming majority is lazy in their consumption and creation of art.
Selfies, cheap polaroid cameras bought on Ebay, quick Instagram photos — it’s all too easy, all too accessible.
But let’s look at someone like Nick Brandt, a fine art wildlife photographer who embarked on a lifetime adventure, where he planned to create a trilogy of fine art photography books ‘to memorialize the vanishing natural grandeur of East Africa’ (Wiki). He set out to do a project knowingly that it will take him years to produce it. He went to photograph animals being as close as possible, without using telephoto lenses because he could see the importance of creating a connection with the animals.
His work is sold for hundreds and thousands, but quick money was not the goal because he lives and breathes wildlife photography, and that’s something artists should take into their personal work. Projects might take hours, days, months and years to produce but if you jump in it head first and are prepared to work hard for it, the results will show.
Don’t become lazy.
5. We have no direction
More often than not I see people who say they are passionate or interested in photography but they have no set direction. They book a model, show up on the day all prepared with their gear carefully packed, and they have no ideas. They just want to shoot. ‘What are we shooting?’, you’d ask, but you wouldn’t get a proper reply back.
‘What ideas do you have?’, ‘what do you think we should do next?’… and the questions keep on coming when I work with people who have not got a single theme or idea in mind. They see other people shooting models every other week, and they want to be part of that community. They want to have pretty pictures to show others.
If you confuse people with ‘what are we shooting today?’, then imagine the looks you’ll receive if you ask ‘how are you using the work?’.
Most of the time it’s answered with ‘what do you mean?’. Other times there is no answer. The files will lay in a folder, perhaps to be touched a few times before the boredom will take over and the next model will be booked. Sometimes you might see the photographer actually finish the image or a few, but not always.
If there is no direction and no reason to be shooting, then there is no reason for the photographer to spend time on finishing their work. If there is no direction, then the work will disappear sooner or later.
What’s the alternative? Running low on ideas? Set yourself very simple goals, e.g ‘today I’ll be shooting couples’, and do street photography focused on one single theme that’ll tie in different types of photography. You’ll learn to see more if you have a simple theme. Other ideas could be to produce a book that’s filled with photography depicting one type of emotion. It could be literally anything but always have a (mini)plan of sorts in mind, something to make your shoot worthwhile.
6. We just want to see naked girls
Unfortunately, but that sometimes is the case. There are number of men who book female models because they want to enjoy some form of engagement with women, even if it is through the lens. They enjoy seeing and shooting semi or naked women, and it could not be any more blatant than that.
What do we get in the end? Imagery full of female photography that is satured with colours, very sharp (we do not want to see it all sharp!), no realistic emotions (looking at the camera, smiling and pulling your underwear down is not a realistic depiction of females), and it is solely based on the female body NOT their personality or character, whether imaginary or real.
I am not condoning photographers who shoot women for the right reasons, I shoot women myself, but I am pointing out that sometimes what we see online is produced by people who are lonely, looking for contact with females, or have obsession with certain types of fetishes, e.g photographing women solely with large breasts.
It numbs our minds as we scroll through 1000s of images that are all the same but with different faces, there is nothing there to make us stop and take another look. It’s all too vulgar.
So what happens in the end? We feel no satisfaction from our creations, regardless of how many temporary likes they might receive. We feel no enjoyment that we otherwise would feel if we used our technical skills, imagination and curiosity all in sync.
We will start going through the motions, doing someting for the sake of doing it not because we genuinely want to or are excited about it.
Our passion will begin to fade and sooner or later we’ll put our camera on ‘Buy or swap camera gear’ Facebook group.
So, before that happens ask yourself these questions:
1. What am I passionate about?
2. Why am I shooting?
3. How can I improve?
4. What’s my next project?
Hopefully, answering these questions will make it more clear for you where does art and photography stand in your life.
Keep creating. Do it your way.
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