My photography philosophy

In photography, as with any art form, people's opinions on the subject matter tend to vary considerably. For some reason however, there is a general conformity when it comes to composition rules, adherence to "reality", etc. I do not follow the consensus views in this regard.

Composition: It is considered generally sound to follow the "rule" of thirds. I consider rules of this nature to be for people without any imagination. This might be helpful, however, for a beginner who is putting more effort toward mastering the equipment than composing art. The only rule that I follow in any art medium, is that of the senses. I will at times place the focal point smack dab in the middle of the viewing surface because that is the effect I wish to achieve. I refuse to be confined to placing my focal point on a 1/3 intersection point. I don't favor placing horizon lines on a 1/3 line. I basically disagree with nearly every aspect of this "rule" (see the sunrise above).

Horizontal and vertical lines: These lines don't readily exist in nature except perhaps at the beach or a few areas in the great plains, where there is a nearly perfectly horizontal horizon line assuming one is standing on a perfectly level surface. In nearly all other landscapes, there are hills, mountains, trees, and a myriad of other obstacles that prevent horizontal horizon lines (ie, they should be sloping at various degrees; see above). For this reason, I rarely ever incorporate a truly horizontal horizon into my art. I look to capture the rise and fall of the lay of the land or in the case of the image above, I look to exagerate or offset the perspective other lines in the scene are creating. The same is true for vertical lines. Trees aren't vertical, mountains aren't vertical. Even devils tower in WY isn't vertical. They appear vertical, but in reality, the base of a "vertical tree" is wider at the bottom and thinner at the top. If one side is vertical, the other side surely isn't, but more than likely neither side is vertical. The important thing to remember about lines, is that they create perspective. Just as value creates areal perspective, lines create linear perspective. Perspective impacts the viewers orientation and how they will perceive gravity in your image. With lines, just as with tone values, one can create powerful illusions.

Photographs capture reality: This is a personal preference, as there is certainly some value in this area of conformity. People try to capture moments, events, and even document nature all with photographs. However, all too often photography is shunned as an art form, and photos that look even slightly too good to be true are disparagingly thrown in the "photoshopped" category (or at least asked if they were). My view here is that photos make poor substitutes for the grander of God's masterful creation. When I'm out in nature, I have five senses and nearly 180 degrees of viewing area with which to digest a scene. When a viewer admires a photo, there is only one sense and a small viewing area available to attempt to get the brain to replicate the photographers experience. To compensate for these deficiencies the photographer must use illusion to bring out the feeling and message of the artist. This could mean vivid color, stark contrast, exaggerated white balances to convey warmth or coolness, perspective, focal length, and a whole host of other things available to the photographer.