by Joe Machine

Created on: July 27, 2010

Photography is an almost contradictory mix of art and science. It is an art form just as much as painting, music, or writing, and I've seen hundreds of photos that I would call art. But there is also a technical side: getting the exposure right for the effect you want to achieve, making creative use of depth of field, and adhering to the rules of composition. Some people have a natural flair for picking the right subject and shooting it at just the right time from the right angle, and some have great technical ability and are able to have the resulting shot come out just as they want. But the real difference between an ordinary photographer and a great one is that great ones have developed both talents and know how to use them together.

I like to think of myself as a pretty good amateur photographer but I know where I fall short of great. My technical skill is pretty good and my artistic vision is OK, but I wish both were better. Fortunately the technical side is something that one can learn, practise, and consciously develop. Whether the same can be said of the creative/artistic spark I'm not so sure. I think like most talents you have to be born with something that can be trained and honed. If you don't have it to begin with no amount of coaching is going to make much of a difference.

Does that mean if you don't have the artistic flair you will never be any good? Not at all. There are many fields of photography and lots of people make a living just from the technical side - shooting objects for a catalogue for example.

I've just noticed that I haven't mentioned equipment at all yet. Does that mean that the quality of the equipment you use is irrelevant? Well to a certain extent I think that's true. Something people have often said when viewing my photos is, “Wow, that's a great photo. What camera do you have?” The inference being that a good photo comes automatically from a good camera. Not true. A bad photographer with a top of the range camera will still take bad photos, and a great photographer will get great results even with a basic point-and-shoot compact.

If you want to become better at photography then changing your camera is the last piece of advice I'd give. Instead, work on the two sides of great photography. Learn the rules and the science behind it so you know why a certain shot didn't come out, or how to freeze the action at a sporting event, or how to get the vivid colours of that sunset to come out just as you see them. There are hundreds of books on the subject. The bigger challenge is to work on your “photographer's eye” and try to develop your innate artistic talents.

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