Different photographers different results

If you exhibit your photographic work in public there are a few comments/questions you get asked more than any others:

1. "What camera do you have?" or "You must have a really good camera."
2. "Is this manipulated?" or more specifically "Did you do something to this in photoshop?"
3. "Did you use filters on this?"

In the modern world of digital technology, question 3 has given way to question 2. I intend to talk about this question in a later blog so I won't go into it just now.

The first one really annoys some photographers, as its a bit like saying to a chef "That was a fantastic meal, What pans do you use?". Me I'm happy to answer it, as it really is a backhanded complement, because the person can't imagine they will ever get results like that with their own camera and you must have some special magic.

One of the best examples of why it is quite a silly question, has just been posted by David Toyne in his article In The Eye of the Beholder? Here he shows what happens when a group of photographers are all given the same scene to shoot. The difference in the images is stunning and goes a long way to prove that the most important it of equipment a photographer has is his/her own unique view of the world.

This was driven home to me after looking at the images from fellow photographers taken at Happisburgh one morning. Most other photographers produced beautiful interpretaions of the entire scene in front of them.

Me I just liked this piece of the shattered sea defences:

Forgotten Guardian
(Click to view large)