Resolutions
A very rare and misty day over Shenzhen.
So, the saying goes something along the lines of ‘you become like the people you surround yourself with’, and I’m lucky enough to be surrounded by a lot of great people, both physically and virtually. A lot of these great people write things down, and here’s something about sitting down to read your friends work that is so refreshing in the current age of ‘everything you see, hear, and read must appeal to you and sell you something!’ To just delve into the genuine thoughts and ideas of someone without any other purpose is just nice. That, along with having a ton of photos I wasn’t doing anything with, was the catalyst for starting these articles I’ve been jotting down. Although I’ve not written a great deal, it has been nice getting thoughts and ideas on [digital] paper since starting this little project a year ago. Naturally, the first thing to do this year is to keep the writing going! So here we are again.
I don’t generally get the whole new year, new me thing. It’s just marketing companies lying to you to get you to spend money on stuff you don’t really need and are going to give up in a couple of weeks. Besides, why do we need a new year to start something? What was wrong with December 28th, April 15th, or any other random day? If there’s a time to change something, there’s no time like the present. Perhaps somewhat ironically, though, all the mention of new years resolutions got me thinking about making some changes of my own.
Photography wise, last year ended pretty well - see 2020-won in pictures. So I’ve taken my time this month to think about a few things in the world of photos. Mostly, how I’m going to continue improving my skills, but also how I’ll continue to enjoy clicking that little button to capture light while I do it.
Two and a half years after picking up my first DSLR, I'm finding myself in a spot where I can take averagely good enough pictures of a bunch of things. And whilst I'm incredibly grateful for anyone that tells me they're amazing, or I'm talented etc., because really, that does mean a lot to me, all anyone sees is the hand-picked 'good stuff' I choose to share. Like everything else you see on the internet, don't trust it. I still take pictures of the ground by accident. There's also that obvious point that everyone's their own worst critic, so a lot of photos I take get stuck in limbo because I don't think they're good enough to share and then inevitably forget about them.
Having been in a bit of a lull towards the end of last year, I’ve spent some time thinking about what to do. I’m not planning on making any stupid resolutions like posting to Instagram every day because I know for me that’s just not going to happen. It might force me to get out more or just take more photos, or even worse, just share any image I get for those sweet, sweet likes. But that’s unlikely. Considering I took over 15,000 images last year, I probably could have found enough to fill the ‘gram. It’s just not something that important to me. This year, I actually want to improve and continue enjoying my photography, not simply take more photos. And with that in mind, I’ve given myself five photography ‘resolutions’ that are going to be part of 2022.
Resolution #1 - Print 5 Photos
Printing images is something I’ve considered before, but I’ve just never got around to it. Too indecisive about which image to choose. Too lazy to research printers. Too concerned about the colours not being quite right. Or a whole host of other reasons that have led to not doing it. Then it just never happened. However, the end of last year offered me the privilege of seeing my images printed in a few different ways. A gallery print in London, a photo book published for the Expats Eye Shenzhen competition, and a lovely framed print for the Shenzhen International Foto Collective’s secret Santa. Something I really enjoyed about all of those occasions was seeing my images as an actual physical thing. I’m so used to seeing them digitally on a computer or a phone screen that I’d never really considered what it would be like to see those images in a finished state - as a printed piece of work. For that reason, the first obvious choice for this coming year is to get more photos printed and just enjoy having my images around, not lost as a series of zeros and ones in the big digital realm. I’ve set the goal of having 5 printed by the end of the year, so we’ll see how it goes. Let me know if you want one!
Resolution #2 - Finish a Roll of Film
Film. It’s been around for a long time. But how different can it be? Since picking up a camera, I have forced myself to shoot in manual mode to know what I’m doing, what to change, how to operate it. Still, you can’t deny the magic of technology. I skipped film entirely and barely even hung around the DSLRs. I went straight in for the mirrorless so I could take a billion frames a second and capture the slightest movement and freeze it. Or y’know, accidentally snap 100 images of complete blackness because I didn’t realise the touch shutter mode was active and my thumb was resting on the screen. But again, the magic of very helpful technology is what produces the images, really. I understand the little digits my camera shows me, and I even know how to manipulate them pretty well. Ultimately though, I can see every single adjustment and thing that happens through that little viewfinder in real time.
So what if I couldn’t? That’s where this beauty comes in - the Canon A1. I’m currently borrowing this one from a friend, but I should have my own arriving in a couple of weeks! Exciting! I’m interested to see how the first roll of film comes out. Terrible, I’m sure. Even with the saving grace of film making things look nice, but that’s the challenge. This one’s all about slowing down and learning something new, savouring a moment and capturing something intentionally, rather than snapping 200 photos and picking one or two keepers later on. There’s a lot to learn for this resolution, but that’s the fun part. The goal is to get past a few rolls of film and work out the kinks of over and underexposure, then actually get out and finish a roll of film of intentionally taken photographs. And with any luck, a couple of them might not look too bad either.
Resolution #3 - Take Fewer Photos
This one might seem a bit strange at first, but it kind of goes together with the previous point of exploring film photography- slowing down and thinking about things. Of course, it’s fantastic to be able to shoot 20 frames per second and capture every single wing beat of the tiniest sparrow, but what I’m finding is that I’ve developed a habit of taking a lot of shots of everything, even when I don’t need to. No one needs 50 shots of the same object that’s not even moving. Just take one, perhaps two or three, for a change of composition. I’ve got used to just holding down that burst shutter and dealing with the aftermath later. So, this brings us around to resolution number 3 - to take fewer photos. The main point here is to think about things more. To slow down and take intentional pictures. Consider all the aspects before taking a photo, not just shooting a ton of images and trying to pick a good one later. There are definitely times when that burst shutter will be flying; for tiny little birds, it’s a must. But aside from those crucial moments, it’s time to switch it up to the single frame shutter and start making fewer photos.
Resoluton #4 - Set a Purpose
The theme of this year's resolutions is probably becoming quite clear now. More intentional photography. This choice comes down to more of a practical approach as well, though. It's not a rare case for me to be going out to shoot and end up with a huge bag full of gear just because I'm not sure what I want to take photos of. What if this comes up? I should take that lens in case. If there's a chance of macro, I need that flash and those others things too. Will there be good views? Maybe throw a wide lens in just in case. It's impossible to be prepared for photographing everything that comes up, but I've damn well tried. But not this year! This year will be different. Resolution number four comes down to setting a purpose for a photography trip and accepting the shots that will be missed. I'm lucky to have some nice gear, and my go-to 100-500mm lens really does a whole lot of stuff. It'll always be the one to pick up if I’m not sure what I need, but there are definitely times I can leave it at home and just accept not trying to take photos of birds if the point is to hike a mountain and get a landscape shot. The same goes for macro. If I'm looking for little things, it's probably unnecessary to carry around a 100-500mm lens just in case. So following these rules, I'll be carrying one, at most, two lenses whenever I go out and really focussing on a specific goal each time. Even if that goal is just to explore, do it with one lens, not five. I can always go back for other opportunities.
Resolution #5 - Start Some Projects
I’ve realised all of these resolutions are kind of linked and build onto the next, and the same goes with this one. Setting a purpose to be practical when shooting also leads nicely into setting an actual purpose for shooting in the first place. It’s nice to head out for a walk with no real intentions and shoot whatever’s about. But after sitting down at the end of last year and curating the ‘Colours of the Wild’ series to enter into the Expats Eye Shenzhen Photo competition, I realised it’s not often I’m actually working towards something. So this brings me around to resolution number 5, which is quite simply to get some projects going. Success here! I’ve already started one, and there’s another one waiting to be started that should have already begun. I’ve just not taken any photos for it. The first one is taking up a lot of my time over this next week during the Chinese New Year break, and I’m looking forward to putting that together for the end of this month. The other is a cool disposable camera project suggested by the SIFC photo group I’m part of. The 27 frames project is an excellent idea - 27 topics, 27 shots on the roll of film. The only catch is it’s all black and white. Quite a nice way to get into something new and think about photography a bit differently this year. I look forward to seeing how that turns out. The whole concept kind of includes all the resolutions I’m making, so I thought it was a great one to take part in. Updates for that when the film is finished and developed.
For now, though, that's it. Today's the first day of a new Lunar Year, so it seems somewhat fitting to have had this first month of 2022 to think and plan some resolutions and now post about them on New Year's Day. I can't wait to look back at the end of 2022 and see the difference these efforts make to my photography. So if you’re now feeling like making some changes to anything, just remember today's a new year. But so is any other day you want to make changes. Just start, and keep going. I'll leave you with a few images from this month.
Happy Lunar New Year! 新年快乐！
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The first shot of 2022