Musings on Photography Goals
A modified narrative of some musings in my nature journal written on January 1, 2019...
Sometimes it is good to reflect upon our goals; upon why we do what we do. We are often more motivated and get things done more efficiently when we set clearly defined goals for our lives, our jobs, or our photography.
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 19396142 - Red-bellied Woodpecker; Clarke County, Georgia. January 1, 2019.
In 2018 I downloaded the eBird app in my iPhone. As soon as that happened, my goal was to list and photograph birds like mad… and I did! (Thankfully my Nikon D500 could bluetooth connect to the phone!) In 2019 I tried to get a photograph of every bird, mammal, reptile and amphibian I had listed on my life list. And I came quite close. My goal for 2020 was to go through hundreds of field notes and photographs from several years in the Okefenokee Swamp and turn them into the Okefenokee Photography Project blog at www.okefenokee.photography. So what about now? Do I keep shooting like crazy? Do I keep all those lower quality photos, or just the really good ones that qualify for portfolio and stock images? I think the answer is: yes to all!
Although I do strive to produce quality photographs, my nature photography isn’t necessarily about the quality of the photograph, but about the subject. It is that individual bird, snake or plant that deserves the attention, not my photography. I’m not as interested in producing high quality photographs as I am in just photo journaling all the awesome creatures that I encounter.
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 19396141 - Turkey Vulture; Clarke County, Georgia. January 1, 2019.
But on the other hand, my hard drive and blogs are filling with thousands of images. To edit and blog them all can really take some time. If I'm not careful, my hobby can morph into work and create a feeling of stress when I fall behind. So how about just keeping the quality images or the rare animal finds in order to lighten the workload? I can talk myself back-and-forth depending upon my mood!
In the end, who cares! I’ll do what I want to do on that day. Why set some “rule” that I’m bound to? I’m just going to keep getting outside, shooting what I want to shoot, posting what I want to post and enjoying God’s creation that He has so generously given us a time to enjoy!
Life is short. Get outdoors!
Observations
Photos / Sounds
What
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)Observer
williamwisephotoDescription
First bird photo of the new year. See nature and birding photo journals at www.williamwisephoto.com.
Photos / Sounds
What
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)Observer
williamwisephotoDescription
See nature and birding photo journals at www.williamwisephoto.com.
Comments
Yes, William. Keep them all. A 1TB SSD costs relatively cheap compared to when you started your iPhone project.
Yes. Keep 'em all! You can never regret that.
@kennalan Nothing compared to the price we spent on packs of 800 speed film back in the day!
William I just got my first smartphone a week ago, a line I never thought I'd cross. The photos are better but I've learned never to expect a connection or to upload them from the field.
Since my the long lens is on my DSLR all the time, I like having the smartphone for wide-angle shots of habitat or landscapes. But I don't think any phone camera will ever compare to the photos from a "real camera"! Thanks for reading!
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