Practical ideas on how to make great photos.

Magnus (great)

First of all, what are we really aiming for as photographers?

My thought:

We are striving to become great artists, to make great works of art.

In Latin, the notion of a ‘magnum opus’ literally means “great work”.

Thus, it is my personal ambition to make as many great great photos and art-works before I die.

What do I consider a great photo?

To me, a great photograph is simple yet elegant.

1. Simple: Simple aesthetics (black and white)
2. Elegant: Movement, soul, motion, dynamism.

Furthermore, generally speaking– great photos last. Great photos should look great 300 years from now.

How to determine which of your photos are great

For myself, my ultimate counselor is time. I make it a practice to always look at my older work, to continue to distill my photographic portfolio — to keep curating my work, and to keep pushing myself to evolve as a visual artist.

Throw your photos into the iron jaws of time, and see if they will last.

Look back at your old ‘classic’ photos, and ask yourself:

Do I still like this photo?

Be ruthless to yourself. ‘Kill your babies‘ — be more ruthless and objective to your photos.

Remember, you’re not your photos. Thus when you’re killing your old photos, you’re not killing yourself.

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Shooting great photos

To shoot a great photo means:

Strive to make an epic photograph, by combining your skills in composition, light, and ‘working the scene’.

When you witness something you want to photograph, it is impossible to know whether it will become a great photograph or not. Thus, what we should strive as photographers is this:

Shoot a scene in a way that will increase the likelihood of making a great photo.

How to increase the likelihood that you will make a great photo

Some tips:

1. Photograph more situations which scare you, or feel ‘risky’. The more risky photos you shoot, the more likely you are to make a great photo. I know this is especially true in street photography; the more ‘risky’ photos are more likely to become great photos.
2. Work the scene: Photograph MANY photos of the scene! Then later choose the 1 version of the photo which you believe is the strongest.
3. Strive to make the best composition while you’re shooting a scene: To make a great composition while you’re shooting, strive to SIMPLIFY the scene. Furthermore, experiment shooting with a flash. Also experiment with different composition techniques.

Keep distilling

Become more exacting of yourself. Strive to continually to push your own visual artistry to the next level.

Seek greatness from yourself.

ERIC