What makes a good Photograph?
To capture a sense of place in the photograph.
An image that is personal and has a meaning that you can relate to.
An unusual scene that has been hidden from public sight such as a derelict building or a buzzing foreign marketplace away from tourism.
A photograph should provoke a feeling or emotion.
The composition or layout of a photograph is what ‘makes it.’
A sense of depth and distance is vital for any photograph to work.
In my mind a good photograph should make a ‘statement.’
To capture the expression of the subject, usually found to be from the eyes.
Creativity and imagination is the key factor.
I like portraits that capture the character of the subject.
Candid photography captures real life which is the most important part of a good photograph.
Vivid colours, clarity and sharpness.
Unusual Perspective makes a good photograph stand out from the rest.
An image that I am instantly drawn to.
Something natural and un posed.
Black and white with a hint of a dominant colour.
I find the nude model inspiring in photographs.
A photograph that has been unedited by computer software or digitally manipulated.
A scenic landscape that changes your mood.
A good photograph takes you back to a distant memory somewhere in your sub conscious.
Something minimal without the fuss of old ‘fashionedness.’
Something that shows your personality and who you are as a person.
The answers (above) shows the results from the biggest question that I face in this module:
What makes a good photograph?
The locations of my survey varied as I wanted a wide range of opinions from different people with different ages, interests etc. I asked people inside shops selling camera equipment around Liverpool such as: Currys Digital, The Sony Centre, Maplin etc. My results showed that these people had a technical view rather than relying on a ‘visually based’ opinion. I also discovered that the majority of older people preferred landscapes and traditional subjects whereas the younger generation showed a broader opinion ranging from traditional through to urban environments and contemporary pieces.
Other locations for this survey were: Liverpool Museum, Libraries and the Albert Dock. These opinions were harder to acquire due to people either not interested in the question or their answers being naive and wary. They seemed annoyed at being stopped from their rushed walking probably due to the fact that Liverpool is usually littered with endless charity campaigns and company advertising which they try to walk past and ignore.
I agree to a lot of the opinions, I feel like most having been thoughtful and inspiring. The survey clearly shows that photographs mean different things to different people. Personally, photographs are close to my heart as they can show happy moments in time, family portraits and they also let me express myself in a way that other mediums cannot fulfil. It is quite refreshing to hear people’s views as it has put my personal practice into perspective. It has made me clarify my thoughts and inspired me to photograph using a broad range of techniques and subjects.
When producing my own photographs I will take all my results into consideration to improve my images and think about the end product. I am open-minded in my photography as I feel that experimentation is just as important as technical factors. Although I know that I will also need to research and study the practical features that make good photographs into great ones.
