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Hello, .

"Now, What Should We Do?"

When it comes to photography, we should ask ourselves that question a lot, especially when making a picture.

The answer, which should be answered only by ourselves, depends on our communication intent.

However, and this ain't a good thing, there's a lot of photographers who aren't us who'd have an answer to the question.

Worse yet, if we use our camera in automatic exposure mode, it will answer the question with its unfeeling and unknowing algorithmic evaluation and make the picture for us.

We've forgotten how often we let others or technology tell us how to make the "best" pictures.

Shifting away from a prescribed, uninformed answer gives us freedom and creates uncertainty and anxiety.

We gain freedom because we're now thinking for ourselves.

However, if we are unsure about camera operation, composition, and light, we can experience anxiety and uncertainty.

And when we experience anxiety and uncertainty, we wanna know how we're "supposed to" do things.

So, we look to others and technology to tell us how we're "supposed to" do things.

As a result, we indoctrinate ourselves into a homogenous visual expression that comes with the limited 'supposed to' way of making photographs, a set of norms and rules that dictate how a photograph 'should 'be composed", limiting our creative freedom and unique expression.

And that's where our freedom ends.

The freedom that allows us to express ourselves uniquely with our camera and base our compositions on our unique intent of communication.

And yet, our enrollment into the 'supposed to' way of making pictures continues.

All because we want to alleviate the anxiety and uncertainty that comes with not knowing what we're doing.

But we can change.

But, like all change, it's not easy because change takes effort.  

On the other hand, it's not easy knowing that we can do better than working in the realm of "supposed to," which limits our creativity and the vitality of our unique visual expression.

The bottom line is we can choose or let someone or something choose for us.

Choosing is a privilege that frees us from the photographic doldrums of 'supposed to.'

In other words, when we make our choices, it's a privilege to regain our freedom from the photographic doldrums of 'supposed to,' a creativity-killing state of visual stagnation and conformity that limits our unique way of seeing and expression.

Understanding the relationship between camera operation, composition, and light can help us make choices and regain our freedom.

By studying and practicing photography with me, you'll learn to make your own choices and regain the freedom of your unique photographic expression.