Re: [photo-3d] Re: To math or not to math?

["Oleg Vorobyoff" <olegv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

George A. Themelis wrote:
>> The professional's answer to unknown situations is
>> "bracketing".
Brian Reynolds replied:
>...I don't recall ever meeting, or studying with, a professional
>that actually brackets (for exposure) when on the job.

I do not see why what professional photographers do or not do should be
the gold standard.  A professional's primary task is to produce what the
client wants.  I personally like to look at beautiful pictures.  I think
that an amateur is in many ways be better positioned to produce pictures
of beauty than a professional.  (For one thing, how many professionals
are out there taking stereo?)    The danger of adopting professional
aesthetics is that pictures will be skewed in favor of initial impact at
the expense of subtle, more lasting beauties.  Not that I have anything
against professionals.  I'm sure that within many a professional beats
the heart of an enthusiastic amateur.

As for precision, I do not think that sloppiness should be excused.
However, beauty, being subjective, is elusive.  You can do everything
perfectly from a technical standpoint, as well as aesthetically, and
still produce mediocre picture.  In fact, great pictures are far and few
in between.  Blind luck often plays a major role.  Read Ansel Adam's
account of how he captured his famous moonrise.

If you recognize that a particular situation can result in a great
picture, my recommendation is to first think hard for a moment to make
sure you are not about to make any blunders.  Do calculations if you
have time (I find that simple lookup tables are more reliable; mine are
printed on 3x5 inch cards).  Then bracket the hell out of the shot, as
long as the moment persists.  Bracket exposure, stereo base, shooting
position, focus, filtration, anything you can think of that might
significantly affect the look of the picture.  But if the glorious
moment passes, stop, look for something else.  One of the luxuries of
being an amateur is that you can afford to take risks.  You can bring
back an exceptional picture from situations in which a prudent
professional would only take acceptable ones.  Or you can be happy
coming back with nothing at all.

Oleg Vorobyoff


 

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