Before I start my usual ramblings, I want to tell you about something really cool. =JacquiJax (the inspiration behind the Global Tutorials Project) has set up BIBLIOTECArte: Biblioteca de Arte para Hispanos, which (I think..!) means Library of Art in Spanish. It's a Spanish-language library of important editorials and tutorials on dA and =JacquiJax deserves applause and hugs for taking the initiative to do something so helpful.



Please give the project your support by faving the news article and by using the stamp (above).


Now, on to my ramblings...
I'm a photographer. I arrange things (and people), light them, take photographs of them and process these photographs like every other photographer in the world. When asked what I do, I say "I am a photographer" or "I take photographs". I don't spend a huge amount of time thinking about what this means to me, or how the way I work differs from the way other people might work. I must have done at one point, but I don't really any more. I want to think about this more. I spend lots of time analysing other people's work, appreciating it and enjoying it but so little time really thinking about my own work from a (reasonably) obective viewpoint, or considering why I go through the processes I go through.

Ok, so I'm a photographer. I take photographs of things and people, but more important I take photographs of concepts and emotions. I am as happy if people hate my work as I am if they love it because I want to inspire emotional reactions, positive and negative. As pleasant as controversy can be, one of my favourite things in the world is showing someone a photograph I've taken of them and seeing them happy with it, excited by their own appearance.

I don't aim to shock people or make them happy by showing them something they've never seen before. I aim to show people things in a way that they might not have seen them before, in a way that might make them think. At the same time, if I love a concept and want to shoot it I couldn't care less if a million people have done it before me. I create art because I love creating art, not because I'm under any illusion that everything I do will be incredible and original. I still get bouncy and excited during a shoot when everything goes really well. The first and most important reason I create art is that it makes me happy. If it ever stops making me happy, I'll get a new job.

What I see through the lens of my camera is what is in the finished photograph. I process my RAW files and save them, but I don't add or change backgrounds, 'fix' people's appearance, add elements to a photo or remove things from pictures. Not because I think there's anything wrong with doing that stuff (digital art is a wonderful thing), but because it's just not what I'm into. For me, the art is in creating an image before a camera is pointed at it. RAW processing is important, but to vital piece of the puzzle for me is put in place before I touch my camera.

I don't believe that equipment makes a photographer. I understand that the final image has to be of a certain standard which can only be created by a certain standard of gear, but I believe that the art comes from behind the camera, not inside it. I love my photographic lights, but before I had them I spent a lot of time shooting with domestic lighting and floodlights bought for £6 each from Screwfix Direct. I still love shooting in natural light. I still use an incredibly cheap camera simply because it is light and small enough for me to use (I almost never use a tripod) for long periods of time without my hands and arms seizing up. If I had the money to upgrade, I would buy a newer small, light camera. My confidence and self-esteem are not directly proportional to the weight of my tools.

I am not competitive at all (other than with myself). I truly believe that creative people should be able to work together without trying to out-do each other or screw each other over. I believe that everyone has their own motivation and their own style, so the scope for working together without one-up-manship is endless. It grates on my nerves no end when people are precious about what they do and see everyone else as the competition. I am happy to share my techniques so that other people can learn from them. I believe that art progresses through interaction as much as inspiration.

In terms of style, the thing I aim for (regardless of genre) is to create an image where the subject is instantly clear and impossible to ignore. I try to create pictures that are striking, strong and confrontational (and I don't believe that confrontational has to be a negative thing). Variety is challenging so I have no desire to operate only within one genre. I love hearing how other people interpret my work. It's great when people see something in it that I tried to express, but even better when people see something in my photos that I didn't intentionally put there.

So what do YOU do?
I don't mean just your job and I don't mean a one-word answer like photography or drawing. How often do you really think about exactly what it is that you try to express with your art? What techniques do you use? What personally-imposed guidelines and boundaries do you operate within? What effect do you hope to have on people? What reaction are you looking for? How do you challenge yourself? How do you perceive your own style and how does this differ from the way other people perceive your style?



Don't forget about the Global Tutorials Project (as if I'd let you!)