Rules! Good to learn, good to let go

Sunday 31 July 2022, 14:41 by Erik van Rosmalen | 4,726 views | 3 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

Photography is full of rules. That is useful as something to hold on to. But sometimes you need to learn them... and then let them go again. Above all, don't focus too much on other people's work.

'You should crop it like this. And then adjust the exposure a little in this way. That would make it much better.'

Unasked, I received a message from a photographer in my inbox. He had seen one of my photos and had an opinion about it. Of course, that's allowed.

But I wasn't necessarily inclined to do anything with it. No, the photo wasn't in the 'right' place according to the golden ratio. And the contrast that was supposedly better? It was a misty morning. I wanted to capture that soft light.

Rules of photography

The photographer had followed all the little rules neatly. The composition rules, the histogram that should supposedly be more 'in the middle', and so on. But he briefly forgot the essence of the picture.

Those kinds of 'rules' are very useful when learning to take photos. And every now and then I try it myself. During a walk through a city or a wood, I pick one rule and focus on it.

For example, only making images that contain a certain colour contrast. Or making sure that all the photos have more layers in them (foreground - subject - background). It keeps you sharp when taking photos.

Once you have mastered the rules, you can let them go again. I do that very deliberately too. Like with the photo mentioned earlier. But also with the photo below.

A few weeks ago, I was in a nature reserve nearby with model Shannon. I saw a beautiful image in front of me, especially on the black-and-white film I shot this photo on.

Kodak Tmax100, f/4, 1/125e

What the photographer intended

The photographer's email made me think of another moment. Years ago, I was at an exhibition featuring work by Stephan Vanfleteren in Maastricht. His portraits of well-known Flemish and Dutch people were hanging on the wall in large print format. Beautiful, intense black-and-white portraits.

At one point I saw three rather older gentlemen. All three had a camera backpack, and two of them also had a tripod strapped to the back. Probably keen photographers.

And they weren't standing a few metres away from the print, like I and many others were. They were standing just a few decimetres away. Bent forward. Their noses almost pressed against the photo.

'Well. It is beautiful, of course. But if you look closely, you can see that it isn't completely sharp. What a shame.'

What did I think at the time?

If you really look closely, you can see what the photographer intended...

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