Keep It Simple

There are times that we overcomplicate our lives. We climb into our own head and complicate our lives. We set unreachable goals, we believe others have something we do not and finally we convince ourselves that we do not have the right tools. Then, occasionally, we have moments of enlightenment. In photography it finally hits me...it's about the subject and the photographer. Everything else is noise. The only signal worth discussing is the subject and the photographer. 

The subject must be interesting...if it is not then why photograph it. The photographer has to make choices and those choices are reflected in the image they take. For example this photographer above, I was on the beach with the family and had an old Pentax film camera that was given to me. I just had one lens and the prism was cracked. The camera was rough but all I need is film and a black box and I can capture an image...so this camera, in its sad state, was still much more than I needed.

My son was getting out of the water and he walked over to us under the umbrella. I asked him to pause for a quick picture and he complied. You can see he is tired, you can see he is serious, not the face of a young kid playing in the water. He seems to almost be looking past me. 

The subject made the picture. I was there, with a box and film. Nothing more. Now this picture, in my mind, is one of the best portraits I have taken. It speaks on multiple levels and just works...thanks to the subject. 

So simplify your life...find the subject that entertains and the rest will work itself out.