Hello, .
If Darwin had paid attention to photographers, he'd have noticed some photographers adapt.
Some are professional, and some are amateur.
These photographers are more often called "Generalists."
They all have a solid understanding of light, which allows them to understand what needs to be done to photograph various things.
For example, an adaptive photographer, assuming they had the appropriate equipment and understanding of technique, could photograph almost everything from architecture to zebras in the wild while riding in a moving safari truck.
Photojournalists, especially at smaller news publications, tend to be adaptive photographers because they're usually asked to photograph a wide range of work under various lighting conditions.
Working as a photojournalist, I learned to light with a portable flash, which made me a more adaptive photographer and allowed me to get more assignments.
Stuff
like portraits, spot news, feature stories, staged events, sports, real estate, food, etc.
If you're thinkin' "Ain't an Adaptive Photographer a Jack of All Trades but a Master of None?"
Absolutely not!
Most of us see mastery in specializing in subject matter, but adaptive photographers don't do this.
Instead, their interests lie in understanding light.
That's because an adaptive photographer understands what all the stuff we photograph is really about. It's not so much about characterizing subject matter; it's about the characteristics of light specific to the subject matter.
What adaptive photographers have going for them is that they've realized that we need to understand light.
If we understand light, we know what to do with our camera to get the best pictures regardless of the subject we photograph.
It's all about the light for adaptive
photographers.
From that understanding of light, assuming we have the equipment and technique, we can do various works.
You might ask, "Do Adaptive Photographers See Light Differently?"
Nope. But they sure think about it differently.
For example, when considering a landscape to photograph, most people see and describe it as whatever physical features they see.
The landscape may include mountains, a fast-flowing river, fields of brightly-covered wildflowers, and tall green grass moving in a steady breeze.
That's an excellent, detailed observation and description of the landscape, and most of us would leave thinking about what we're seeing.
However, while adaptive photographers see and think about the landscapes the same way
most of us do, they add some additional thought that helps them understand the light they're working with.
For example, an adaptive photographer would view the moving river, breeze-blown moving grass, and flowers as reflective light
sources since they understand what they see as a bundle of light characteristics. Of course, the mountain would be a reflective light source, not moving.
An adaptive photographer would tie the observed movement to the shutter
speed. Then, they'd figure out which type of shutter speed would support their intended composition, faster or slower. Of course, there are more light characteristics to consider besides movement.
They're in alphabetical order:
color, direction, distribution, duration, intensity, movement, and texture.
An adaptive photographer consciously works with and thinks about those characteristics of light during camera operation and
composition.
Currently scheduled classes are below.
And remember, we learn and improve by doing, so practice making at least one picture daily.
That's all for now; thanks for reading!
Sam
