Developing a sense of vision part 1

As we progress on our photographic journey we are constantly seeking ways to improve and refine our image making. We are persuaded by manufacturers and the media that we need the latest gear or the in vogue techniques to grow and develop our craft and these things are all valid but for me the more important element to master is learning how to develop "vision".

I meet many people through my photography and I am often asked how I captured various images. People tend to recognise the locations but often comment that their images never look the same. They then follow this up by asking me what camera I use. For the most part the difference in images between one photographer and another has little to do with equipment and much more to do with a sense of vision.

So what is vision and how should we go about mastering it?

I believe vision is the art of portraying more than just the literal image. It is about getting a message across and evoking an emotion, looking at a landscape, knowing what you want to say and communicating that using only the elements in your viewfinder. Without vision an image is just a snap, a record of a particular place and time, but with vision it becomes a much more powerful medium through which we can convey our thoughts and emotions.

Vision is unique to every one of us; a personal expression of how we see the world, how we react to our environment, what we see and our emotional response to it.

My photographic vision has been moulded by my love of the great outdoors. When I stand in front of a landscape I want to photograph I feel inspired. I am often struck by a sense of awe and wonder at natures beauty. For every image I make I try to capture something unique about that particular environment, by selecting and carefully using the elements available to me I try to give the landscape a personality which I hope then conveys my connection to it.

From a practical point of view there are several things to consider which can help us develop our sense of vision, but I will save those for another day. As 2013 stretches in front of us maybe this is the perfect time to consider our what we want to achieve photographically in the comming months. We may already have new gear to try out or new techniques to practice but whist doing all that we should think about our vision and what message we want to convey with our images. It may be this after all that makes the biggest difference to our photography.

For inspiration have a look at "Developing vision and style" which has contributions by Joe Cornish, Charlie Waite and David Ward.

My new e course "Reconnecting with our environment through photography" will be available later in the year, but please feel free to register your interest now.

Happy New Year everyone.