Have you ever given much thought to what kind of photography really turns you on? If not you should. Identifying the kinds of subjects that interest you and giving some thought about the kind of photographer you want to be will help you learn faster and develop your style into something uniquely your own.
There isn’t a wrong answer. Okay, maybe there’s a couple. Perhaps if you told me your aim was to have 10,000 followers on Instagram religiously viewing daily ‘selfies’ of your ‘duck face’. In which case I’d argue that isn’t photography – it’s pure unadulterated social media vanity!
So, what kind of photographer do you want to be?
- Do you want to be a commercial photographer?
- If you do what discipline turns you on most?
- Is it going to be just a hobby for you?
- Would you like to see your work on the walls of a gallery?
- What are your favourite subjects? Landscapes? Urban? Travel? Macro? People? Family? Something else?
- Is it that you want to hone your skills to better use your photography as part of something else you do? (For example, travel blogging)
- Do you just want to impress your ‘friends’ on Facebook? (Wrong answer number two! Your friends don’t know good from bad and will always tell you that you are brilliant no matter how terrible you are – don’t deceive yourself or you will never improve!)
As a closing thought for you. It doesn’t matter what subjects interest you, or the types of images you make. The important thing is to think for yourself. By all means listen to others, but the only measure of success is you. Thinking seriously about your photography and where you are going will help you improve more quickly. Try to make your next image better than your last. Think about it like an athlete constantly trying to improve on their personal best! Never stop being self-critical!
If you haven’t thought about this already, why not sit down, clear your head, and make a few notes right now?
