Episode 07 - Find Your Unique Photography Style
Audio:
Shownotes:
Viewer Question: Michael Costa from The Growing Photographer on Youtube
Actions from this episode:
Go for a photography walk with another photographer - of course keeping COVID safety in mind - and see what photos each of you create. What subjects are you drawn to.
Take one of your photos and ask another photographer to tone and edit it. See how their choices are similar or different to your own.
Bring awareness to the decisions you make during the photographic process. Try one or more of the 5 ways to see your own style.
Ask others what they see in your work. They’ll find it easier to see and describe it then you ever will.
Notice what lenses you favour, and how wide or narrow that frame is.
Look at what subjects and moments you’re drawn to during the selection process, and which ones you avoid.
Analyse your portfolio to see what trends you see in terms of composition, colours, and light you love.
Pay attention to and how you approach toning, and the creative choices you make when editing my photos.
Nurture your style by trying one or more of my 7 ideas oh how to expess your style and see where they take you.
Look at what you love in the photographers you follow. Try to put what you love into words. They could be emotions, themes, techniques or anything the resonates with you.
Pay attention to what images you use in your mood boards and what you’re drawn to. What patterns can you see in the images that inspire you?
Figure out what focal length your favourite images are taken with. Then get a prime lens that makes you stick to it, so you can learn how to best use it.
Look for trends in your work and consciously decide whether or not you want to continue capturing photos in that way.
Play and experiment with your approach to photography. See if your results get you closer or further from taking images you love.
Pay attention to your Interactions with others, and how you make them feel . Because how you make them feel impacts how they emote.
Become ruthless with your selects, and only pick the best images to add to your portfolio. Not all shoots will make the cut.
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Episode Transcript:
What’s up, everyone? Welcome back to another episode of the Photo Proventure Vlogcast.
Today I want to delve a bit deeper into photographic style. How to see your own and how to develop it.
I’d love to hear from you – What do you struggle with the most when it comes to finding your style in photography? Let me know in the comments on YouTube or send me a DM me on Instagram. You can find me @mattkorinek
Let’s get into it.
I was inspired to talk about this when editing last episode’s coaching session with Patrick. I really resonated with his struggle to see his own photographic style and it’s something I’ve thought a lot about.
Let’s start with why it's so hard to see your photographic style.
Now I’d argue, that MOST people struggle to see their own style. I know I do!
But I don’t struggle to see the style of other photographers. And other photographers tell me they can see mine. Is that something you’ve experienced ? If so, what’s the deal?
Well I believe that photographic style is as unique as a fingerprint. There can be similarities, for sure, but no two are the same.
The reason for that is because style is directly related to how you see the world. That worldview is based on your personality and experiences. It’s informed by what you like and what you don’t like.
Thing is, Your worldview is mostly invisible to you. The mental lens through which you see the world is one that’s difficult to be aware of. It’s something that’s always there. It colours what you see and what you pay attention to.
So when you look at your photos, it’s hard to see a style because you’re seeing the subjects and moments that you chose. The compositions, colours, and light that struck a chord inside you.The colour toning and editing that you picked based on a feeling and your own taste.
These things wont seem special or different to you because that’s just how you see the world. They can almost seem mundane.
But what happens when you look at the work of other photographers? You get an insight, a window into how they view the world. What beauty they see in the world and how they see it.
The excitement that’s created at that moment, is one that comes from the momentary discovery of a new way of looking at something. You’ll call it THEIR style.
By looking at other photographer’s photos, doing a workshop or course, or even having a photographic mentor you get a glimpse into their worldview.
And if you like what you see, you have an opportunity to bring it into your work, in your way.
Let’s take it a step further beyond photography.
Are you aware of your blind spots? Your quirks? How your views on the world shape your interactions with others? Probably not.
Now think about those around you. Do you find it easier to point out their blind spots? Are their quirks obvious to you? Can you point out where it is their worldview is impacting their relationships? Probably.
We humans are not very good at seeing ourselves as we truly are. We lack self-awareness.
That’s why most humans hate hearing their own voice or seeing themselves on screen. Consider that even your mental picture of yourself is a lie, it’s a backward view of reality – because you most often see yourself in a reflection. In a mirror.
It’s just part of the human condition.
So If you don’t see your style yet, it’s ok. It’s actually normal. Don’t be too hard on yourself.
Now, That does beg the question: how to start to see your style? Well in one hyphenated word: self-awareness.
How a human-being fully achieves that, is beyond the scope of this humble vlogcast.
But I can share 5 ways that I’ve tried to become more self-aware about my photographic style.
1. Asking others what they see in my work. They’ll find it easier to see and describe it then I ever will.
2. Noticing what lenses I favour, and how wide or narrow that frame is.
3. Looking at what subjects and moments I’m drawn to during the selection process, and which ones I avoid.
4. Analysing my portfolio to see what trends I see in terms of composition, colours, and light I love.
5. Paying attention to and how I approach toning, and the creative choices I make when editing my photos.
Basically, I’m trying to bring awareness to the things that I do unconsciously and am searching for patterns.
So let’s say I’m right, and your uniqueness is the source of your personal style; Then How can you develop it further?
The good news is, that you already have a style, because you’re a unique, one-of-a-kind individual. We just want to allow it to blossom and fully express itself.
If you want to speed that process up, here are 7 ideas on how to nurture your style:
1. Look at what you love in the photographers you follow. Try to put what you love into words. They could be emotions, themes, techniques or anything the resonates with you.
2. Pay attention to what images you use in your mood boards and what you’re drawn to. What patterns can you see in the images that inspire you?
3. Figure out what focal length your favourite images are taken with. Then get a prime lens that makes you stick to it, so you can learn how to best use it.
4. Look for trends in your work and consciously decide whether or not you want to continue capturing photos in that way.
5. Play and experiment with your approach to photography. See if your results get you closer or further from taking images you love.
6. Pay attention to your Interactions with others, and how you make them feel . Because how you make them feel impacts how they emote.
7. Become ruthless with your selects, and only pick the best images to add to your portfolio. Not all shoots will make the cut.
The deeper you delve into your unique perspective, your likes and dislikes, the more you’re likely to stand out. And standing out is how a photographer becomes known for their work.
It doesn’t necessarily have to be super different from everyone else, it just has to be you.
Now before we get into actions you can take, I’d like to answer a viewer question related to photographic style.
If you have a photography-related question head over to photoproventure.com/ask and I’ll answer it on a future episode.
This week our question is from Michael over at the YouTube Channel The Growing Photographer.
He asks
“Style is a dangerous thing though no? Isn’t it better to edit to what the image asks, rather than manipulating it to fit your style?”
First off, What a juicy question Michael, thanks so much for asking it.
Now I don’t think style is inherently dangerous. In fact, I think that NOT having a style might be more dangerous in some ways. Here’s why:
As a consumer, you pick brands you resonate with. Clients are just like consumers for photographers. They’re trying to find photographers that will make their target consumers emotionally connect with their brand. And they’re more likely to pick a photographer they resonate with than one that doesn’t.
So if you DON’T have a distinct style, it’ll be harder to stand out, and attract the clients that your work is perfect for.
That said, there will always be clients who aren’t image savvy. They’re likely looking for a service that fulfills a specific need.It may mean the client’s aesthetic may not align with your style.
In that case, Michael is right, that it may be dangerous to infuse your style too strongly. But in the cases where I take those kinds of jobs, I probably wouldn’t include that work in my portfolio, because it doesn’t represent me and my style.
Regarding Michael’s follow up question about editing for what the image "asks", I certainly agree that the content and context of the image will impact my approach to toning. And of course, different clients have different toning/look requirements.
I do edit based on the content of the image, but because my approach and preferences are somewhat consistent, I still get a distinguishable style from my editing.
I don’t go quite as far as other photographers who always edit to the exact same colours, but that’s because that’s not what I like, at least not right now.
But I don’t think those photographers are wrong for doing that. I respect it's what they like and that’s their style.
When I think a bit more about Michael’s metaphor of "what the image asks", I think to myself who's answering and what is their answer?
I think the answer would differ between photographers. A single RAW file edited by two photographers will give different results.
And then isn't that style?
What are your thoughts on this tricky subject? Let me know in the comments on YouTube.
Ok, it’s that time when I’ll share a few actions for you to consider trying to further develop yourself as a photographer.
1. Go for a photography walk with another photographer - of course keeping COVID safety in mind - and see what photos each of you create. What subjects are you drawn to.
2. Take one of your photos and ask another photographer to tone and edit it. See how their choices are similar or different to your own.
3. Bring awareness to the decisions you make during the photographic process.
Try one or more of the 5 ways to see your own style.
4. Nurture your style by trying one or more of my 7 ideas oh how to expess your style and see where they take you.
If you’re watching on YouTube, I’ve bookmarked these sections in the table of contents below so that it’s easy to find and go back to.
If you’ve enjoyed this episode and found some value in it, I’d love it if you share it in some way with someone in your life that would benefit from it.
And if you are new here, please make sure to subscribe on YouTube or your favourite podcasting platform or both!
You can always find other episodes, show notes, transcripts, and other goodies over at photoproventure.com/vlogcast.
So between now and the next time I see you, try one new thing, and get closer to the photographer you want to be.
