This is the third in a series of notes really written for myself. The aim is to improve MY OWN photographic ability. You can join the journey if you want to.

Nothing can quite compare to that moment when providence presents you a particular opportunity to record a dazzling image and you become aware of it. I personally get the shakes! My heart beats 1000 miles and hour and usually I have to prepare equipment, feeling around with shaky hands while my gaze is frozen on the subject, mentally imploring the chance to be maintained long enough for me to capture it.

As mentioned before, I have to really work at seeing better. Spotting those opportunities now gives me such a rush that it is compensation in itself!

Have you ever found yourself looking at a scene at the exclusion of all else, then, with a start, realised that you are the only one paying attention to it? Sunrises and sunsets tend to catch many people’s attention. On the other hand, many eyes are carried bye that same beauty unseeing!

An excellent way to improve shot perception is to learn how other outstanding photographers “see” by studying the photographs they create. Study as many publications as you can, including the electronic media. You won't like every photo published, but that's okay… we all have different tastes. When you see a photo that is just superb and you realise how it was made, you'll without a doubt wonder why you didn't think of capturing a subject like that. Here’s the tip: select a central theme that you like, find suitable subjects and locations and then practice that theme, ad nauseum (or just short of…). An unusual theme, for instance, can be “Texture”. If you look at “texture” photographs, then go looking for good texture subjects / locations and you eventually take a number of successful “texture” photographs, you grow as a photographer and move up the scale of Great Seeing a notch or two. Then when you feel the need to move on, select another theme and repeat the work out. Remember to diversify… I want to be a champion bird photographer, but finding out how to do good architectural studies or human portraits (just as examples) teaches one more about the art… and it eventually enriches the results in that niche you want to excel in.

"Texture" means so much... one thing to one photographer, something else to another. This is what I came up with to suit the catagory:

...and...

 ...plus...

Check out the results of this flickr search for texture. Some amazing images, hey! And think about it, the techniques for achieving each is SO different. We have a LOOOONG journey ahead of us!   So, we are birding photographers... we run this search: texture bird ... even MORE amazing!

Photographing textures or any other theme is just an idea. Latching on to an idea is NOT copying the other photographer’s work! After all, you'll have subjects far removed from that contained in the illustration you like, in a different part of the world, probably during a different time of the year. That's what these publications do for you – they show you what great photos look like and give you ideas that you can pursue to create your own wonderful photos. Over time, you'll discover more inspiration and modify old ideas. Eventually, you'll take everything you have learned from others and mix it together with your own discoveries to evolve your own unique vision.

Very often a specific image requires us to learn about those technical aspects of photography that would have remained unexplored by us, had we not been on this quest. Don’t shy away… that is part of the benefit of our growth.

Let’s start looking!

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