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Vision Priority Mode
April 17th, 2009
I was going to end this week off with a list of photography bloggers who are dishing it up consistently well, but I’d like to give y’all a little more time to weigh in on that. So I’ll post that next week. In the mean time, something a little more along the lines of brainfood.
Sometimes I find myself saying things and before they’re out of my mouth I realize it’s too late and I come off sounding like one of two people: Grandpa Simpson or Mary Poppins. The other day I put a comment on Twitter to the effect that great photography happens at the junction of vision and craft, to which my smart-alec wife replied: “I think “the junction of craft and vision” sounds a bit hokey. Is that where Engineer Discipline hooks the Engine of Hard Work up to the Train of Possibility?” Yeesh, have I become a total cornball?
And then just this morning I started writing this article and started with, and erased, a rant about Program Mode and the way camera companies seem more and more to be playing the “this camera’s so good, now there’s no reason not to shoot like the pros” card. Suddenly I realized that the next step for me was complaining about this newfangled VCR technology and yelling at kids to get off my lawn.
But. I still have a beef. If my friend Ron Carroll chimes in here a couple times a month it’s often as the elder statesman reminding me to be gracious and positive. So with his voice in my head, let me re-word my rant into something more, uh, uplifting-ish. Ok, that’s a stretch, how about less rant-ish? Ok, here goes.
Nothing the camera companies will ever do to their cameras will make shooting “like a pro” (whatever that means) automatic. There will never be a “shoot like a pro” mode and I’m reminded of this every time I or someone else jokes that the P on the camera’s mode dial stands for Professional. While “being a pro” seems to imply that all professional photographers create photographs that transcend mediocrity – OH! How I wish this were true! – it just isn’t so. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the designation of professional means you make money at this, nothing more. It does not mean your work is excellent, your vision has stopped evolving, or your craft is at its apex. It certainly doesn’t mean your work is better than other photographers who have chosen to do this avocationally. In fact, it could mean the opposite. Doing this professionally often means deeper ruts into which we fall.
I’m digressing (but I think the rant’s gaining momentum. Sorry, Ron. I tried. I am a weak man)
Somewhere along the road we lost sight of this simple, fundamental fact about photography – it’s an aesthetic craft. How much light hits the film plane/sensor plane is important for a decent exposure, but if that’s how we define a “good photograph” then dear Lord, take me now. Randomly choosing an aperture of f/8 because it lets in just the right amount of light isn’t photography. It’s math. Our cameras are really good at the math, but lousy on poetry. And that’s what photography is. I don’t want to steal his thunder, so I’ll skirt the analogy, but Vincent Versace wrote a beautiful, and profound, Afterword in my book, Within The Frame, and it’s had me thinking ever since. Sure even in poetry math has its uses to describe metre and rhyming structure, but it’s role is descriptive, not prescriptive. Poems are about passion. So is photography. And the minute I allow my camera’s math to determine the look of my image is the minute I concede that, in fact, photography is nothing more than framing things and letting the camera do the work for me. Every aperture setting, every shutter speed, has an effect on the aesthetic of the image and it should be you, not the camera, making those choices as they correspond to your vision.
To me this means shooting on what I call AV/EV Mode. I shoot in AV mode, consciously choosing the aperture because the first aesthetic choice I generally want to make in regards to exposure is the depth of field. Then I use the histogram to tell me if I’ve got something close to a good digital negative, and I use the EV compensation to bring the exposure closer to my ideal. Some of you will do this using TV mode. Some will use Manual, and even others will use Program and shift the aperture/shutter combination. For the image at the top of this post I shot on Manual mode to allow me the most control over my panning. However you do it, I encourage you to reconsider the role your camera’s mathematical brain has in contributing to the poetry of your images.
Thus endeth the rant.
Have a great weekend. When Monday rolls around it will be a mere 3 weeks until the book is released. You can almost hold your breath that long.
Well said as always but I wanted to point out one thing… Ummm dude – there’s kids on your lawn. Get ‘em off – NOW! I’d say more – but I gotta get out and shoot today. In Av mode thank you.
[...] Check it out here. [...]
I started shooting – with my first DSLR – in AV/EV mode. I knew right away that P or “Green Square” or whatever other auto mode wasn’t why I got the camera – so why cripple my creative ability with automation?
AV mode is so simple, you control your aperture, you control your depth of field you tweak your EV left or right depending on your feeling at the time (note: my feeling was wrong on my Iceland trip EV -1 on overcast days = beginners mistake) and you start taking control. And when you’re in control – the pictures are yours.
I have to chuckle about P for “pro”. When I started learning from another pro, she used to tell me that that P was for “panic” as in, I’m at a wedding and she is nowhere in sight to help and everything I shoot looks like crap and I am panicking – then put that puppy in P and take a moment to regroup.
Maybe we should all start thinking of “P for Panic” – because that is really the only time I want to use it.
I like that, Stacy. Not a bad use for the Program mode. I think they all have their uses (well, some of them. Not sure about some of the more “creative” ones…) and throwing the camera into Program to regroup is great. Panic mode it is!
The Term “You can lead a horse to water,but you can’t make him drink” For me explains why people use P mode. Even with digital & it costing nothing to give M,S,A priority a try. They wont because they don’t want to touch any more dials beyond the on button.
But, you know not every one wants to take a picture that gives people goosebumps,evokes deep thoughts,inspires one to go out & do something for the world. Take my dad & most of my family friends for instance. They just want a pic that reminds them of the moment,a grandson, a vacation. a loved one.
I think P should stand for Preserve. because it will just take a really good picture & preserve that memory for their lifetime.
Jared – Good point. I guess when it comes to Preserve mode I would much rather carry a little P&S, not a big DLSR, but it takes all kinds of people to make the world go round.
Hey, I’m glad Program mode is there, I just shudder when I think about using it. If it does what you want it to, and I know there are people, even pros, who’ve found a way to make it work for them, then great.
But I don’t like it.
No one has pointed out that your picture on this post is the bomb. I’d love a wallpaper of it. Vroom. Lavender car!
I suppose that (too) many think that a camera takes the photos, and they just have to point it in the right direction. That will result in a photo, but there is nothing creative in that process. When I learned to shoot is was de rigeur that one began on a manual-only camera. I think that if I were teaching I’d ask my students to do the same.
My camera is almost always on A. Sometimes M. I can’t remember the last time I used a different setting, but I’m certain to have used them all, including Panic.
Top-of-the-line cameras are nice, and fancy gear is great, but without creativity and artistic vision, they simply result in really expensive snapshots
David, I’m with you all the way, my friend.
I’m with you too. For me, vision is the #1 concern and how I get it to equate to that, i don’t worry about so much as I just get it there somehow.
Having said that, predominantly I use A mode as most of my stuff is done on tripods which makes shutter speed and iso less of a concern. If I do go handheld then I start leaning towards A with an occasional thought for Tv and if, and only if, things are getting real tricky do I go manual. The one and only time I tried P I ended up with a long exposure and a black screen …thought “hmm, that’s wierd” and never tried it again lol.
@ Stacy,
Love that – P is for Panic; I’ve been there too many times to count.
OH…the other day enroute to a beautiful wedding, two photographers that were shooting with me started talking about the whole “P for Professional” mode…so, we came up with our own…
P for Perfect
M for Magical
B for Boring…
anyway, just kidding around…good post David.
Here’s the thing about poetry… Shakespeare used iambic pentameter a lot because it sounds nice, not because he liked the mathematical structure. Unless the camera makers come up with a “P for Poetry” button, I’ll continue following your approach, David. It’s worked well for me so far, and I greatly appreciate it. You know, you can pretty astute sometimes, for a young guy.
David, you have certainly made me think a lot of late. It’s made me get out of auto mode in my thought processes when web browsing and really consider what you have been writing about.
I think you use the ‘P’ mode a lot – not on camera but in your posts. In this case it stands for Philisophical.
DT
I’ve heard the “green square” on the dial called the P.H.D. button too….
( Press Here Dummy..)
[...] David DuChemin chimes in on the thought that cameras will turn anyone into a pro: And then just this morning I started writing this article and started with, and erased, a rant about Program Mode and the way camera companies seem more and more to be playing the “this camera’s so good, now there’s no reason not to shoot like the pros” card. Suddenly I realized that the next step for me was complaining about this newfangled VCR technology and yelling at kids to get off my lawn. [...]
It just happens that on my (first ever) visit to New Orleans this past week I decided to use AV instead of M – just to five myself a little break from a lot of thinking – it was after all, a “vacation.” I LOVED using that mode. And reading your post about makes me want to use it (and TV) a lot more than I have in the past.
I was also wondering if you have any suggestions for how to keep notes about the images one takes while traveling. I don’t typically shoot people during travels but this trip decided to give it a try. Problem is I tend to talk to a large percentage of the people I photograph. I want to know what brought them there. (I’m the person you hate sitting next to on an airplane if you hope to finish reading that novel) This means I come home with lots of stories about my photo subjects.
Is there a recommended method for keeping the stories (some can be lengthy) attached to the images. Personally I use Lightroom for cataloging and pp.
If you (or anyone) has thoughts on this I would love to hear them.
Thanks so much for having this really worthwhile spot on the web.
Christine, the best thing I’ve come up with is a Moleskine notebook (I’m a fanboy about only a few things in life, and this is one of them) and small prints stuck to the page to remind me who I’m talking about. I carry a couple of these on my assignment work – http://www.pixelatedimage.com/blog/2008/08/polaroid-pogo-video-review/ – here’s the link to product: http://www.polaroid.com/pogo/us/ – and there are versions that have a built in camera.
The small prints the Pogo produces are peelable on the back making them perfect to paste into a book with notes. I print two, give one away and keep the other.
Don’t know if this helps. I don’t do much story gathering unless I’m doing it for a client My stories are usually of the encounters themselves, easier to remember. Like your encounter with Grandpa Elliot – that’s gold, baby!
Nice to have you around these here bloggy parts.
Christine, re-reading your comment I wonder if you’re referring to long-term storage of images and stories. I use LR for captioning and keep it to the essentials. You know what I’d love is if you could insert an RTF file straight into the DNG file and read/write to it when you like. That would be cool.
Joe Buissink: “Uh, I use P, P for Professional”
Hmm. Thanks David for the Pogo info. That’s a nifty little gadget! I think think of lots of fun to have with that –
But yes I am looking for a way to easily attach a page or two of “story” to a photo that wouldn’t necessarily go as meta data or anything but just be related somehow. I will probably have to do it the other way around – create the document and note the image info in it. Either way, you’ve inspired me to shoot more people when I roam around. That’s new for me…but I am loving it.
(And yes, meeting and enjoying a private performance with Grandpa Elliot was a real highlight! of my time in the Big Easy. I’ve made one of my shots of him my cellphone wallpaper…)
@ Andreas – If Joe Buissink says it, then I’m the last person in the world to argue with his results. He’s truly a gifted photographer.
@Everyone else – Never seen Joe’s work, check it out – http://www.joebuissink.com/
Fabulous post David, and something that’s been on my mind after four days straight of shooting popular gardens here in Belgium and Holland. “Your camera looks expensive… it must take great pictures!” Sigh, I know we’ve all heard it and we all know “rich uncle Bob” who has an even nicer camera than ours and still insists on using his pop-up flash at the stadium… How do we educate the general public?
Alison – Try telling them your bought it at the same store that Shakespeare bought his really expensive pen
No matter how you reply to this it comes of snarky and defensive, so I just say thank you and then bludgeon them with my second body and 85/1.2
Hey David! I have been so encouraged reading your rants! Most of all reading the excerpts from your book! I have always had a little saying I made up in my head and I thought I would share it with you and then you can tell me if someone else has already said it! True photography is to the eyes, what a symphony is to the ears. Did that make sense? Or how about, Photography is a symphony for the eyes? Anyway, your photography is becoming more like Mozart every day! I know, I’m a cheese ball! Sharon can mock me too if she wants! Can you help me come up with a new name for my photography busidness? I really lack in the creative department when it comes to names! Look forward to picking your brain again soon! Take care!
David, I missed this one when it came out and just found it now. Wonderful to read after getting a chance to listen to you talk the other night! I smiled with I read your definition of “Professional”. I have an uncle in Michigan, the father of 7. He has made his living since the oldest was in diapers making little wooden toys to sell at fairs. After 4 decades of more “art” fairs that any poor soul should endure his one glib remark, “if it sells, it’s art”.
Thanks for keeping me thinking, and if you feel like sending my your busted 2nd body and 85 1.2, feel free.