Flower. USC

How to Improve as a Photographer and Visual Artist

To improve, we usually think it means to make progress from Point A to Point B.

Questions on my mind:

  1. What does it mean to “improve” your photography or art?
  2. Is “improvement” even something desirable?
  3. If so, how can we indeed “improve” our photography and visual artistry?

Improve

Flower. USC

To improve comes from Latin (prosum) which means to profit, be good, be useful.

So perhaps when we are thinking about “improving” our photography, we want to create art works which are “more good” or “more useful”. But good and useful for whom? For ourselves or others?

Who is the judge?

Los Angeles, 2019 #cindyproject #gate #grid
Los Angeles, 2019 #cindyproject

Who is the judge of your art works? Yourself or others?

It seems the wisest option is to become the own judge of your own artwork. This gives you complete freedom; you’re not the slave of the opinions of others.

Yet we still like to create art works which impress others, which put an imprint on the minds of others.

A simple formula

The simple formula:

First strive to make art works which impress you. Then share those art works with others.

How to impress yourself more

What does it mean to impress yourself on a deeper and more profound level?

I cannot speak for others, but let me try to explain when I perceive “improvement” in myself:

  1. I see improvement in my photos when I see my photos which I consider have more ambitious compositions, yet are still quite simple in execution.
  2. I see improvement in my photos when the aesthetics look more beautiful in my eyes.
  3. I see improvement in my photography when I see myself become more childlike. This means, to shoot everything without limits!

My improvements

As I have improved as a photographer, skills which have improved:

  1. Less hesitation as a photographer in shooting photos.
  2. More confidence and less hesitation and self-doubt when selecting my photos; photos which I deem as “keepers”.
  3. More unique images that I haven’t seen; the type of photos I haven’t shot yet, or the type of photos I haven’t seen others shoot before.
  4. Creation of new types of photos which would still impress me if I were an outsider.

How to Improve

Ideas:

  1. Use a wider angle lens. Graduate from 35mm to 28mm to 24mm to 21mm. The wider you go, the more challenging, fun, and interesting photography becomes.
  2. Strengthen and simplify your aesthetics. For example, I’m striving to make more beautiful and more simple monochrome images. I’m also striving to make images which evoke the feeling of strength! Photos with power and gusto, yet feel effortless in execution.
  3. Keep shooting! To continually make NEW photos. To constantly strive to evolve your visual artistry and vision. To realize that simpler and stronger is better.