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What makes a good photograph?
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I don’t think you could come up with a formula or a strict set of rules – especially when taking about a “good” shot. Like music, there are extrinsic factors at play, such as circumstances, age, experience, relevance, appreciation and interest are all a part.
Some of my kids are delighted with a blurred photo of their shoelaces on their Aldi digicam…my wife is delighted if all four kids can look the same direction for a shot…and I like, well, I like what I like!
Many thanks to those that looked in & to all who took
the time to reply to what was my first venture at
starting a topic for discussion in “General Chat”.It now resides, quite rightly, in General Photography Q+A where
I should have put it in the first place.Am I any the wiser about the question I posed?
I’m not sure but I enjoyed reading other peoples
views on the subject.Thanks,
John.
Making a Difference
As you travel and if you’re open to it, life’s great lessons present themselves in sometimes the smallest of ways.
A few years ago on assignment in Europe, I met an elderly gentleman carrying an old wooden tripod and worn leather camera bag. On this crisp, clear morning we struck up conversation, discussing many things, including our continuing enjoyment of the wondrous opportunities that photography had offered us. When I asked what kind of pictures he liked to take, my new friend paused to reflect. After a moment he smiled, more to himself than at me, before saying with quiet pride “I have never taken a photograph in my life. I prefer to make them”
The beauty and simplicity of those words will stay with me always. Their legacy is that for me now, photography is as much about giving as taking. It is about looking for, nurturing and crafting images from what is there to be seen before you.
The next time you go to take a photograph, pause to reflect a while. Have another look, have a different look and see how you can make it better.
Tim Griffith – Awards Annual in 1999.As has been said already. You could write reams on the “Art”, “Craft”, “Science” and “Psychology” but the question in its vaguest form..
What is a good photograph?
A good photograph, for me, is one where I look at it, put it down and then want to look at it again. If while looking at it, I find myself wishing I’d taken it, then that confirms it for me.
Si
I would say LIGHT and how it is manipulated is what makes a good photograph. As for what is a good photograph? I would say any photograph which gives satisfaction or enjoyment, whether to the photographer or to others.
I rekon the question should have been What is good? We will all have a different opinion on what is classed as good, great, crap etc. I have looked at photos taken by amateurs which to me personally far outshine photos taken by some of the best known professionals. To say something is good does not necessarily mean it is great. Therefore it is a personal judgement of the person viewing the photo as to whether it is any good or not.
Mick451 wrote:
“Therefore it is a personal judgement of the person viewing the photo as to whether it is any good or not.”
Surely that just reduces everything to meaningless subjectivity and politically correctness; the ultimate excuse for the triumph of mediocrity: niceness.
Well subjectivity for sure, not sure about the rest of the sentence. :)
Si
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