In a message dated 7/24/01 8:21:33 PM Pacific Daylight Time,
bstanke@xxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
> Better yet, do the work you enjoy most whether or not anyone else likes the
> result.
There is a magazine called LENS WORK. It is devoted solely to B & W
photography and most is done with medium or large format. But there are some
interesting essays in each issue. In the August issue there is an excerpt
from a paper on art and art critics; art teachers and such by Leo Tolstoy.
He was writing before the advent of photography as a serious medium, but he
had some pretty interesting things to say about art ( sometimes what we do on
film has that title). The quote above is right on with Tolstoy's position.
Tolstoy said, " No school can evoke feelings in a man, and still less can it
teach him how to manifest it in the one particular manner natural to him
alone. But the essence of art lies in these things."
If I get 1 or 36 good shots from a roll I have succeeded if I am happy with
it. The mechanics of proper exposure, sharp optics, etc. ; are a necessary
part of what we do as Zuikoholics. But isn't it really about the result we
get when we do photography? It has been said here before - go out and shoot
photos! The film and the processing are a relatively small cost in the
scheme of things.
My two cents.
Dave Dougherty
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