Wednesday is Cruising Photo Day - 2020!
- Thread starter TomY
- Start date
I don't agree. Through this forum alone, there are a number of professional photographers of clear and recognizable talent. Compare their work, their choices and their sense of composition to the vast majority of us casual photographers who post beautiful pictures on here and I, for one, can see a difference. It is similar, in my mind, to the arguement around the game of Poker. Is it gambling or is it skill? There are those who consistently excel against others who play casually. It proves the arguments in favor of skill.
As a well thought out photograph has elements of great art, it is ultimately the photographer, who know how to recognize those elements and make the choice to present the works from a collection of images, that elevates their talent above the masses. The same could be said for choosing a photoshopped image.
Maybe it is possible to tell the difference between a photograph that has been altered by a watercolor filter over a photograph of an actual watercolor, but it is the recognition of the elements of artistry in an image that truly sets the artist apart from others. Great art can be found everywhere, but not everyone can put their finger on the elements that make them great and separate them out from the pack of mediocre art.
Therefore, I feel photoshop and it's filter algorithms are simply tools, like any medium, from which great art with "soul" can be made. "Soul" in art doesn't come from the medium or the method, but from the eye.
Will (Dragonfly)
To clarify, if needed, I was not criticizing the photographer. Far from it.
And yes, if you view Photoshop as a tool, it can be artistically yielded. However my thinking at the time I made the comment is that a Photoshopped photo that's made to look like a watercolor is not a watercolor. There is an ersatz aspect of it. Can it be well done? Yes. Can it be tastefully done? Possibly. When you get into the world of imitation and art, things can get murky. There are some great imitations.
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Prout's Neck, scene of many of his best seascapes.
Perhaps what John was referring to are programs that digitally turn a photo into 'artwork'. Some are pretty good but like Larry infers, often they seem gimmicky. Here's a photo of mine,....
...,that someone put through a program that turns it into a more art form,...sort of.
Nearly every photo, film or digital, gets edited (or should) in the camera and then in post processing. I use Lightroom which is a part of the Adobe Phtoshop family. It's used first as a filing program to help me keep things sorted, secondly as a processing program to edit the images.
Photoshop does the same but it is also a stronger editing program in changing the image. For example in this thread, the painter chose to remove the two boats.
That step would be a breeze also on the digital image in Photoshop with a skilled operator. Poof, the boats would be gone and you'd never see the change and in fact, that would be typical for a magazine cover today (a pro might be able to find evidence of the removal).
Wills right, in the end no matter what you do to an image, it's all in the eye of the creator. There are no magic buttons.
...,that someone put through a program that turns it into a more art form,...sort of.
Nearly every photo, film or digital, gets edited (or should) in the camera and then in post processing. I use Lightroom which is a part of the Adobe Phtoshop family. It's used first as a filing program to help me keep things sorted, secondly as a processing program to edit the images.
Photoshop does the same but it is also a stronger editing program in changing the image. For example in this thread, the painter chose to remove the two boats.
That step would be a breeze also on the digital image in Photoshop with a skilled operator. Poof, the boats would be gone and you'd never see the change and in fact, that would be typical for a magazine cover today (a pro might be able to find evidence of the removal).
Wills right, in the end no matter what you do to an image, it's all in the eye of the creator. There are no magic buttons.
tom, thank you so much for sharing. just love your photos
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,821
I love Tom‘s images. I can see in them the creative eye of an artist.
I admire the water color and the artist‘s talents to work in that medium which is very difficult.
Both need to be encouraged and rewarded if we are to encourage such talent.
And critically important is the necessity to encourage young artist. To help them find mentors.
I admire the water color and the artist‘s talents to work in that medium which is very difficult.
Both need to be encouraged and rewarded if we are to encourage such talent.
And critically important is the necessity to encourage young artist. To help them find mentors.
This is a magnificent photograph, Tom. For me great art does three main things, above all, it must be interesting. This picture is very interesting. The scene is complex with lots to occupy the eye, without losing me by being overly busy and complicated. That is, I can understand it while discovering more on the next glance then I saw on the last glance.Here's a photo of mine,....
...,that someone put through a program that turns it into a more art form,...sort of.
Nearly every photo, film or digital, gets edited
Second, art needs to illicit an emotion. It sets a mood or tells a story that brings the viewer into it; like when I could feel the water in Samantha Mislinski's photograph in the post earlier.
The last thing is craftsmanship. This is not as straight forward as it might seem. Intent might be a better word to use, but art needs to be well done and on purpose. To be interesting and illicit feelings can be done by accident. Nature does this for us every day, a finger painting by a chimpanzee can be interesting, it might even bring an emotional response, but to be great art, the artist should have command over the medium and execute with skill.
I have seen art that was internationally recognized as great art that I didn't like and saw no craftsmanship in. Koenig is an example of this, but upon learning something about the artist and the intent behind the piece, I gained a completely new perspective on his work. While I'm never going to be a Koenig fan, I can appreciate his art knowing he had intended his work to be what it is.
My own art is easily reproduced by other craftsmen with a digital photo and a CNC burner. They have their limitations (Hand work can still do things a machine has trouble with).
There are several online and in the same craft shows I attend who sell their wooden images at a third or a quarter of the price I sell my work at. They are fantastic objects of art at a great price, but they are selling prints where I am selling art with a story, with emotion, with craftsmanship; at least I hope I am. I have to leave some of that to the viewer to judge.
-Will (Dragonfly)
Yours is amazing work, Will, and a great explanation of art. I see it everywhere especially in artists that are makers, like you. I agree on the craftsmanship.
Even painters have to figure out their craftsmanship. They have built systems not unlike a builder or plumber.
It's not until all those parts come together that their work becomes appreciated.
Another Wednesday, another photo of Hanauma Bay from my daughter.
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,821
If you are ever on Oahu in the summer be sure to check out the snorkeling on the North Shore. The section from Shark's Cove to the southern end of Waimea Bay was designated as a Marine Sanctuary several years ago. The snorkeling is amazing and the crowds are much smaller.
I bought that model camera about 2 years ago and it takes amazing images. As good as the iPhones are, the 1" sensor in the Canon does make a difference. I like the compactness of it. I wanted to get better image quality, and the fact that it can be carried in a jacket pocket or belt case was the deciding factor on that form factor vs. a more "serious" camera with interchangeable lenses. I knew I wouldn't want to carry around a larger camera.
In Kansas.....?You lost me here! I have a shark phobia. Galeophobia they call it
It is said that Leif Ericsson visited the coast of Maine before 1492....so out of he fog came this...
She's berthed at Mystic Seaport now; you can just see the mast on the far right, ahead of Amistad and the motorsailer ketch
Draken Harald Hårfagre
Just came across this. Sky is showing effects of west coast wildfires on Long Island Sound. Not cruising, but it looks like we're doing well in the JAM fleet.
