Why do you shoot

[Reschsmooth]

Given the discussions on "is it art", I thought I would pose the question:

Why do you shoot [most of the time]?

Do you:

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?
2. To print and display?
3. To post on here or other sites and display?
4. To form part of your own art collection?
5. To document and catalogue something?
6. For the sheer enjoyment of it and/or for practice and challenge?

Further, do you predominantly shoot to capture something or do you try to create works of art?

I will answer first:

1. I am shooting a series on B&W film that I am printing in a wet darkroom that I will hope to sell as artwork. This constitutes most of my current photography. I would also hope to display some of this around my home, pending the budget for frames.
2. I also shoot to document my family life generally, and my children specifically. This is obviously of limited appeal and I wouldn't be showing this off to too many people who aren't related.

Whilst we have shot 10s of 1,000s of digital images, I now feel a level of personal annoyance that I have all of this data sitting on hard drives effectively serving little purpose (at the moment). I know this is not too different to having boxes of prints or negatives sitting around.

I will probably refine my answer as I give it more thought.

Discuss.

[chrisk]

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?
No. but i do around 20 things a year that generate income.

2. To print and display?
Yes.

3. To post on here or other sites and display?
No.

4. To form part of your own art collection?
No.

5. To document and catalogue something?
Yes. i like being able to record the special moments/ events and they bring back fantastic memories when i reflect on them.

I'll also add another one...

6. Just because you enjoy it ?

YES. this is my main reason. its my zone out time. for me its pure focus on one thing i love doing. even if its just an hour. everything else takes a back seat. hell often i shoot for the sheer love of the process and barely look at the results. its the one thing that's purely mine.

[ATJ]

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?
No. I do manage to sell a few images each year, as well as calendars and cards featuring my work.

2. To print and display?
Sometimes.

3. To post on here or other sites and display?
Yes, but it is less about the images and more about sharing the amazing organisms. It is also in the hope of selling the images.

4. To form part of your own art collection?
No. My work is not art.

5. To document and catalogue something?
Yes. I have a passion for nature and love documenting it, especially the unusual and uncommon.

6. Just because you enjoy it?
Like Chris, this is a big part of it for me. I love the thrill of the chase, finding the organisms but once found I more enjoy capturing their images. Whether it be on a dive, a bush walk or simply pottering around the backyard. I actually get quite frustrated when I find something and I don't have my camera with me - I still enjoy the find and marvel at it, but I hate not being able to photograph it.

[Remorhaz]

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?
Definitely no
2. To print and display?
Yes - but only a little
3. To post on here or other sites and display?
Yes (incl my blog, etc) - Note that electronically is pretty much almost the only way others (incl family, friends, etc) see any of my work
4. To form part of your own art collection?
No - what art collection?
5. To document and catalogue something?
Yes definitely - mostly my family (kids) and they things we, they and their friends do - however this in my case has extended to their school and the events they have as well - here's where it moves from straight documentation toward art perhaps. If I take a beautiful portait of a child that just happens to be at a school event and give the digital image to their parents because they like it - is that a record or art?
6. Just because you enjoy it?
My main reason too - although I'd also like to add the challenge and desire to learn and get better

[Big V]

I shoot so as the passage of time moves on I have an accurate recording of what has happened during my journey, the rest is just a bonus and luckily I really enjoy the craft of taking a photograph...

[surenj]

I like to put my canon to good use.

[Aussie Dave]

I see a pattern starting to emerge here...LOL

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?

No. If I am lucky I might sell a few things throughout the year but there are usually "by chance" sales rather than me out there "selling my wares".

2. To print and display?

To a degree, yes.
Many of my photos are family oriented (of the kids etc.) and are printed to go into individual photo albums...so when the kids are older they will have memories of themselves.

3. To post on here or other sites and display?

If I take photos I would like critique on or just want to share with like-minded peers then yes....but I don't go out taking photos for the sole intent of posting them on a forum (unless it was for a challenge/comp etc).

4. To form part of your own art collection?

I wouldn't say I'm putting together an art collection, though as subjective as this topic is, some of my photos I might consider to be art....but again that's not my intent when I take photos.

5. To document and catalogue something?

As per Q2, documenting the family and friends is a part of it.
Photos of holidays, birthdays, special occassions, moments in time, etc are all a form of documentation I guess.

6. Just because you enjoy it?

Absolutely. There is something that switches on when I pick up my camera and being able to merge my love of photography with my love of computers I love the act of taking the photos and then the PP work that follows.

Dave

[chrisk]

I actually get quite frustrated when I find something and I don't have my camera with me - I still enjoy the find and marvel at it, but I hate not being able to photograph it.

x2 !!!!

[surenj]

ATJ wrote:
I actually get quite frustrated when I find something and I don't have my camera with me - I still enjoy the find and marvel at it, but I hate not being able to photograph it.


x2 !!!!

I used to get quite uptight about this but nowadays I am glad that I can just enjoy the sight without any clicking or monkey business (chimping).

[chrisk]

ATJ wrote:
I actually get quite frustrated when I find something and I don't have my camera with me - I still enjoy the find and marvel at it, but I hate not being able to photograph it.


x2 !!!!

I used to get quite uptight about this but nowadays I am glad that I can just enjoy the sight without any clicking or monkey business (chimping).

yeah i used to get more upset about it until i bought an s100. lol

[Reschsmooth]

ATJ wrote:
I actually get quite frustrated when I find something and I don't have my camera with me - I still enjoy the find and marvel at it, but I hate not being able to photograph it.


x2 !!!!

I used to get quite uptight about this but nowadays I am glad that I can just enjoy the sight without any clicking or monkey business (chimping).

That's a very good point about whether we sometimes get distracted from our environment because we look at it in photohraphIc terms rather than simply with our eyes.

[ATJ]

ATJ wrote:
I actually get quite frustrated when I find something and I don't have my camera with me - I still enjoy the find and marvel at it, but I hate not being able to photograph it.


x2 !!!!

I used to get quite uptight about this but nowadays I am glad that I can just enjoy the sight without any clicking or monkey business (chimping).

As I said, I still enjoy the sight and even marvel... but would really loved to have captured it. I can cite two recent examples.

When I went to Borneo last October, my #1 priority for the trip was to see a flamboyant cuttlefish. While they were first described over 100 years ago, they only came to my awareness in 2005. Since then I have been dying to see one. My 2nd priority was to get some good photographs of one. Just after we arrived at the resort we went for a "check out" dive - so the divemaster could assess our diving skills. I did not take the camera. A short way into the dive I came across a flamboyant cuttlefish ambling (literately) across open sand. I was blown away. It was one of the most incredible things I have ever seen. I think I even cried a little (or maybe my mask was leaking). Fortunately, I had put some lenses in my mask so I could actually focus on something close. I watched it closely for over 5 minutes or until I was dragged away by my buddy. While I was ecstatic to have seen this little guy, I still wanted some images. I was a little concerned that it may have been the only one I would see. It didn't take anything away from the enjoyment it just had me a worried. I had my camera on the next dive (a night dive) at the same location but I did not see one. The first dive the next day I saw one and was able to photograph it and also get some video. I was satisfied even though I did not see another one the whole trip (a total of 22 dives).





Now my aim is to get better video of one - a priority for my trip this year.

The other incident was a dive in Sydney late last year. It was actually my first dive with the D7000 and I also had the GoPro mounted on my reg - I had two cameras capable of taking video. Two thirds of the way through the dive I got buzzed by a large school of yellow-tailed kingfish. There would have been 50 to 100 fish and they were all between half a metre and a metre long. They swam around and around me for a couple of minutes. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I turned the GoPro on and thought I was capturing video of the event, even though I was concentrating on the experience. Once they swam off I stopped the video, or so I thought. I had not actually been videoing at all and had nothing at all to show for it. That's not to say that I didn't enjoy the experience as I did, very much. It is just that it would have been really cool to have video of these fish so close to me. I should add that this is only the second time in over 30 years of diving that I have been buzzed by kingfish, and the last time was more than 30 years ago.

[ATJ]

I should add that there are, for me at least, situations where having the camera and taking photos significantly enhances an experience. An illustrative example of this also comes from my Borneo trip.

On the last night we went for a walk through the rainforest near Sepilok. We saw lots of interesting things. At one point someone spotted a frog on the ground. We had a closer look and I took some photos. I then spotted 2 other frogs - this is despite me having presbyopia (poor close vision). It wasn't until I was looking at the third frog through the viewfinder of the D7000 that I noticed it has things on its back - and they were moving. They were tadpoles and there was absolutely no way I would have seen them without my camera. I was also able to take a photograph which meant that I was later able to identify it as a male guardian frog, <i>Limnonectes finchi</i>. This would not have been possible without my camera.



This sort of things happens quite frequently to me due to my presbyopia and glasses don't always solve the problem, especially underwater.

[ozimax]

Given the discussions on "is it art", I thought I would pose the question:

Why do you shoot [most of the time]?

Do you:

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?

Not now.

2. To print and display?

Occasionally

3. To post on here or other sites and display?

Not really, just incidentally

4. To form part of your own art collection?

No

5. To document and catalogue something?

Sometimes, but not often

6. For the sheer enjoyment of it and/or for practice and challenge?

This is the main reason.

Further, do you predominantly shoot to capture something or do you try to create works of art?

Yes and no.

[aim54x]

My reply Dated 10 Feb 2012 (just in case i revisit this at a later date)

Given the discussions on "is it art", I thought I would pose the question:

Why do you shoot [most of the time]?

Do you:
1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?

As part of work in the sense that I play and test extensively, but not as a direct source of income

2. To print and display?

Sadly I don't print much at present, but I do use various forms of digital media to display my work.

3. To post on here or other sites and display?

Here, on my own website, and at 365project.org

4. To form part of your own art collection?

For my personal collection, but I cannot claim it is an "art" collection

5. To document and catalogue something?

Definitely, my photos show me what I am doing and how I view the world around me. Sorting through my photos often reminds me of times gone by.

6. For the sheer enjoyment of it and/or for practice and challenge?

I have to admit that photography has been with me even when nothing else seems to be working. It is an outlet, a challenge and lifeline for me.

Further, do you predominantly shoot to capture something or do you try to create works of art?

I shoot to document, capture and record, yet on the other hand I shoot to explore and to express...I guess when it all falls into place you could mistake it for art.

[the foto fanatic]

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?

Not likely! Even when asked to do weddings I have refused payment. I have sold a couple of images from my blogs recently, but that was by accident rather than design.

2. To print and display?

No.

3. To post on here or other sites and display?

Yes. Most of my images are for either my blog about Brisbane history or my photo blog. I am also the family photo historian.

4. To form part of your own art collection?

Yes. However mediocre.

5. To document and catalogue something?

Yes. As others have indicated, the family special events and life generally.

6. Just because you enjoy it?

Of course. I have a strong sporting and commercial background and this is the only artistic endeavor I have ever managed. I am rather heavily right- brained. However, photography (as in the actual making of a photograph that no-one else may ever see) is totally relaxing. It's almost blissful.

[colin_12]

I would like to sell some images some day. I occasionally take images for work.
I am continually taking documentary images with a view to publication in articles or books, one must dream a little. Actually a couple are going to be published in a couple of small articles sometime this year.
I really enjoy the discovery of nature and being able to document those bits that interest me.
I also really enjoy the hunt for odd/interesting things.

[biggerry]

Recently the reason for taking pictures and moreso posting them jogged my memory about this post...

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?
only if it involves the exchange of alcoholic beverages in my direction

2. To print and display?
Occasionally, however I hate looking at the same photo for too long, most images printed are family images.

3. To post on here or other sites and display?
No, its not the reason for taking photos, it is a by product of the process and a questionable one at that (for me, at this time). I do like to be able to post images for a small number people of whom I respect their feedback and views.

4. To form part of your own art collection?
collection yes, art of course..

5. To document and catalogue something?
As corny as it may sound, basically to document my journey from a photography point of view, I love being able to look back thru old images and get a feeling of where I was in life (not from a photographic POV but a life one)

6. For the sheer enjoyment of it and/or for practice and challenge?
enjoyment and challenge, as mentioned many times, its like golf, every game is different and its about chasing that perfect picture (which there no such thing)

Further, do you predominantly shoot to capture something or do you try to create works of art?
its probably been taken before, no point in taking a picture just to capture it, hence i fall into the other side, try and make it yours, your art

[Murray Foote]

Why do you shoot [most of the time]?
Do you:

1. Shoot predominantly as part of your work or as a means of generating income?
No (unless it's possible to say that I am retired from the workforce and my non-paid work is a photographer). I do sell prints from time to time but have no chance of covering expenses and I'm not interested in being tied down by it.

2. To print and display?
Yes

3. To post on here or other sites and display?
Yes for posting on my blog. No for posting here and on other sites. I do it but it's not really a motivation for taking the shots.

3a. To enter in competitions
Yes, for Canberra Photographic Society Competitions because comments from our varied judges are very useful and assist my development of images. No for other competitions.

4. To form part of your own art collection?
Yes insofar as I hang a few on the wall. No insofar as I don't specifically set out to have an art collection.

5. To document and catalogue something?
No. My aim is to create evocative images that have their own reality. I regard recording objective reality or our subjective impression of it (which we generally confuse with objective reality) as being usually impossible. I do catalogue images (eg Musicians and Bands) but it's not my motivation for shooting.

6. For the sheer enjoyment of it and/or for practice and challenge?
No. I do enjoy it and I test and practice and I would stop if I didn't enjoy it but it's not my motivation. Challenge is getting closer.

7. To seek satisfaction from creative fulfilment
Yes. And that's not just taking the shot, it's the whole process of Photography.

8. To give something back
Yes. One of my main motivations for photographing Blues is to make a contribution to the musicians in appreciation for their music.

9. To commune with nature
Yes. Landscape photography takes me to places I would not otherwise go and helps me to see them and for a while at least be a part of nature, if often an infinitely small part.

10 To change the world
Yes. I kid you not. It may be quixotic but I believe necessary to try. We are eating the future with our comfortable greed. I take wilderness shots to some extent to show what we have to lose in the hope of engendering support for preserving the environment, following on in a small way from Olegas Truchanas and Peter Dombrovskis. Hence my blog posts, coupled with some of my best images Easter Island: A Parable for Our Times? and Searching for a More Benign Dystopia

Further, do you predominantly shoot to capture something or do you try to create works of art?
Art.

[biggerry]

7. To seek satisfaction from creative fulfilment
Yes. And that's not just taking the shot, it's the whole process of Photography.

nice point Murray, for me, a creative outlet in a world dominated and driven by process, standard and rigidity (thats work btw - sheesh life would be hell otherwise )

[sirhc55]

Well, this person who shall be nameless, gave me the AK47 - hold on, I got lost for a second - it’s photography you’re talking about Gerry!

The very short answer is, I like photography and shooting anything that takes my fancy, actually the same for the AK47

[biggerry]

Well, this person who shall be nameless, gave me the AK47 - hold on, I got lost for a second - it’s photography you’re talking about Gerry!

The very short answer is, I like photography and shooting anything that takes my fancy, actually the same for the AK47

lol, remind me to turn up to your place with rpg launcher to sort out your AK issue