When Taking Photos...

Post Reply New Topic

My photo archives got about 35 thousands of photos, and there are only few hundreds photos with people - mostly with my family.

I studied in photography school, and portrait lessons... it was really hard time for me...

I can make good photos when person is a part of composition ( sample photo ), but "standard" portrait... its not something for me

Things/places/scenery.

I set myself a challenge in April last year: to take 100 pictures featuring people. I set up a Facebook page for it. So far I have 37 photos there... as opposed to the 2000 or so scenery photos on my main page.

I take pictures of people in gatherings that are important to remember, like birthdays, weddings, holidays etc.

But when I am alone I take photo's all the time of things that are out of the ordinary, like mushrooms, ambulances, broken/vandalized objects, interesting buildings, newly bought objects, food I cooked and sometimes -when I'm happy about the way it looks- parts of my body. That last thing is more of an Anorexia related issue than Aspergers though!

This is very interesting to me how it's pretty much unanimous that we don't take pictures of humans. It's not that I plan it that way either. I just don't even think of it at the time. And even after the fact, people just wouldn't be interesting enough for me to want to photograph them. Maybe it's a tendency we have to take people in our lives for granted? Any thoughts on this theory? Here's where there's a twist in the theory for me though. There is a Facebook page dedicated to very old photos and also "then" and "now" pictures of the area where I grew up in NY. When I see one say from the 1960s with people unposed and just going through their normal day (like a shot of a city street filled with people), I will feel all nostalgic and wonder who each person was and where they are today, what they were doing and thinking at the moment the pic was taken.

I don't particularly photograph anything, when I do I like taking photos of things that look dystopian out of context (building sites, damaged things, graffiti, fallen trees, and so forth).



Though I also sometimes take happier photographs:

Why take pictures of people when animals and sunsets are so much more photogenic!

Things for sure. Usually odd items, contradictory Juxtaposition of billboards (an example being an ad for a weight-loss programs next to the Wendy's Baconator sandwich ad), cats (which aren't things; they're beings), buildings, and things of special interest...

I rarely take photos with people anymore -- mostly just astrophotos, closeups, and other unusual shots (like fireflies, startrails, etc.)

I'm a people photographer. The training (photoj school and on-the-job) taught me to build rapport with people quickly. People reveal themselves when they feel they can trust you. So you learn to smile, to show earnestness, and to say the right words to get them to relax and be themselves as you click the shutterbutton. No matter the subject -- people, animals, things, landscapes, buildings, streets, etc. -- I'm taking a portrait in time.

Anyway that's how I got through my shyness of people -- by taking portraits, especially candid shots. But I'm still not a good mixer, still prefer dealing with a handful of people instead of crowds (and when I have to be in crowds, I put on mental blinders and focus on why I'm there among them), and I'm still a loner.

Went out to take photo's today and out of 167 shots 5 had people in the distance (they reminded me of a painting) Got more shots of interesting rocks than people.

Most were animals or scenery but a fair few of sun on water/running water.

Most of my pictures are of trees, flowers, the sky, water, animals and buildings. I love taking scenic photos. I take pictures of objects, too. The only humans normally in my pictures are my family and friends. If I happen to have a stranger in a picture, it is usually an accident because they stepped into my line of sight at the last moment or they drove past the vehicle I'm riding in when I'm taking a picture. When not an accident, I have taken a few pictures of people I don't know because they were wearing costumes I found fascinating.

Some of the pictures that I've taken with my crappy phone camera; in my opinion, they actually turned out to be surprisingly good:

Princess Diana Memorial Fountain, Hyde Park

The Serpentine River at sundown, Hyde Park

Ducks in The Serpentine River, Hyde Park

A swan in The Serpentine River, Hyde Park