I imagine this has happened to all of us: it’s time for dinner, we go to the supermarket, aisles and aisles of food surround us, and yet we can’t figure out what to make.
 

The same thing happens at a bookstore.
 

We’re looking for something to read surrounded by more books than we can imagine, and we can’t figure out which one to get.

We go through a similar experience if we have a movie service like Netflix: with all the movies available to watch, we can’t make up our mind.
 

Even with the Interwebs, we could look up anything we want, hear any song we want, find a recipe to cook something, and even with all this information at our fingertips, our curiosity seems to drop off.

It’s just too much information, and it’s hard to narrow down our choices, especially if we go in without really knowing what we want or need.
 

And now with AI, our fatigue is multiplied.
 

It’s not that this information isn’t good to have access to; it’s just that we have a rough time sorting through it.
 

It’s like getting hit with an avalanche of information that we now have to sift through.
 

The truth is, some of it is misleading, flat-out inaccurate, or, at worst, harmful.

That’s because even AI makes mistakes, especially if it cites an unreliable source.
 

The same goes for our photography: digital cameras are now computers that can work automatically, using algorithms loaded into the camera to evaluate light patterns and produce a decent picture.

Working our cameras in automatic exposure mode relies on the AI built into them.
 

That’s fine if we want a decent picture that anyone could make, but if we’re looking for unique imagery that only we can make, we have to rely on our minds instead of the machine and the algorithm that’s dumped into the machine.
 

There’s so many options on a digital camera, it’s option/information overload.

It’s fatiguing to figure out what we need and don’t need.
 

The easiest way to figure this out is to ask what we want.
 

Do we want to express ourselves, or do we want an algorithm to give us a decent picture that lacks human expression?

Once we figure that out, the fatigue goes away, and our intent begins.

And if we intend to get pictures that express ourselves the best way to do that is in manual exposure mode.
 

That’s because manual exposure mode allows us to control every part of our composition that’s related to camera operation.
 

The best way to create a picture that expresses what we want to communicate is to make a picture that goes beyond showing what we see.

The picture has to show how we think about what we see.
 

Our cameras are the key to helping us do that.

To express ourselves effectively and efficiently, we need to understand camera operation, composition, and light, and how they relate to one another.

We’ve got a camera, do we express ourselves, or do we work in automatic exposure mode and let the camera misrepresent us?

When our pictures don’t come out the way we want, they're misrepresentations.
 

If you want to use your visual voice and learn to speak through your camera, that’s what the introduction of Photography Basics/Introduction to Photography class helps you do.
 

You could also take that class as a series of Private Lessons.
 

Don’t get fatigued by too many choices.

We need to be clear about what we want to communicate and understand how to do so with our camera.
 

Because once we’re clear on those things and narrow down all those camera choices to just a few things we need to do, we can learn to operate our cameras effectively, efficiently, and with confidence, so we can respond to the light we see and express ourselves with our unique visual voice.

And if that's something you'd

like to learn, register for the Photography Basics/Introduction to Photography class.

And if that's something you'd

like to learn, register for the Photography Basics/Introduction to Photography class.

About Sam

Sam D'Amico, a professional photographer and photography instructor, helps anyone who wants to be a better photographer. 

He'll work with his students to increase their understanding of camera operation, composition, light, and lighting. 

Sam started working as a professional photographer in the mid-1980s.

Most notably, from 1992 to 1997, while working as a freelance photographer, he photographed over 500 assignments for the New York Times.

Additionally, Sam received awards for his work while exhibiting his photographs in shows. 

Sam began teaching photography professionally in 1998 through the Highland Park, N.J. recreation department. 

In 2002 Sam moved to Washington, D.C., and began teaching at the accredited Washington School of Photography in Bethesda, Md.

It was in 2003 that Sam developed his curriculum and started teaching classes in Washington, D.C. 

In 2018 and 2022, the Sam D'Amico Photography Classes were voted the "Best of DC" art class by the readers of the Washington City Paper. 

Many photography teachers spend a lot of time teaching about DSLRs and rules of composition that create homogenized, rigid photographs.

On the other hand, Sam teaches about camera operation, thought process, and the individual photographer's visual communication intent. 

This approach to teaching allows his students to use ANY camera (yes, even the camera on their phone) and break free of the rules of composition.

Approaching the creative process this way allows for fluid and spontaneous photographs unique to the photographer creating them.

Sam encourages his students to find their ways as photographers. 

He instills the skills in his students that result in creative, engaging, and unique compositions that reflect the photographer's intended one-of-a-kind visual expression.