How do we find the things we post about, well mostly it is by wandering the wonderweb and locating fascinating images which then lead us to photographers or techniques, these we bring to you, sometimes it is pure serendipity, luck and good fortune. Otto Munchow commented on a post, I try to follow these up as they often lead to interesting dialogues. This time it lead me to Otto’s blog which is considered and insightful, he seems to say some of the things I think about and have observed through the years.
This post is about the fact that often when we add a commercial end to our photography we lose that thing that made us pick up a camera, the simple joy of expressing ourselves in a visual manner. The thing that made us artists with cameras in the first place. Otto has other pertinent posts, you might like to visit his blog pges and see if you agree. here is the start of his latest post
“Don’t we all have to admit it; that we – at least to some extent – all crave for recognition, one way or another, whether we are professional creatives or pure amateurs? But don’t we all also know that recognition is a double edged sword? On one hand, yes, it’s nice to get recognised for the work we do, for our effort, but the flip side of the coin is when recognition becomes the driving force for our creativity. Then we stand to lose it, the uniqueness of our vision and expression. What one day may lead to recognition is the very same attitude that doesn’t make us crave it. That’s the only way we can create from our heart. Without heart and without ourselves invested in our creative work, it only becomes an act of deceit and thus has no artistic or creative value.“.…more
You can see more of Otto’s work on his website
Otto Munchow
Oxford School of Photography 