Admit It – You’ve Been Through All These Phases!

This article over at PhotographyTalk takes us through the life stages of a photographer.

As funny as these sound, they are very realistic – pretty much every photographer I know have went through the same stuff. The only difference is that some get to the final stage sooner, some a little later…

Full Auto Mode

In full auto mode, there will be long periods of isolation in which your camera just sits there in its brand new camera bag, too complicated to learn, too many frustrating hours trying to decipher all the buttons and settings. Then, as you watch more and more YouTube videos on how to use it, you gain confidence, but only enough to shoot in full auto. Pictures of your dog lying on the floor, your kids at play in the backyard, and maybe a self-portrait or two are all that you manage to take.

Gear Mode

Annoyed that you aren’t taking as many pictures as your new camera warrants, you resolve that getting more gear will force you to make more time in your life for photography. Three lenses, two tripods, a couple of post-processing programs, and a bag full of filters later, you have an extensive kit, but still very little idea of how to use your camera, let alone any of the new gear you just bought.

Photography God Mode

With a little more practice, you find that every picture you take is amazing. Portraits, landscapes, street photography – it doesn’t matter. Sure, you’re still in full auto mode and have very little control over what’s happening in-camera, but it doesn’t matter with results like this! Things are in focus, you’re using the rule of thirds, you know the difference between overexposure and underexposure, you’ve mastered layers in Photoshop and know how to adjust contrast and brightness – you’re really hitting the big time now, and your photos prove it.

Reality Mode

After a brief stint as the world’s best photographer, reality sets in. You realize that you still have no idea what ISO means, the difference between TV and AV mode on your camera is totally lost on you, and you couldn’t explain aperture to someone if your life depended on it. With new resolve, you set out to learn the technicalities of photography.

Study Mode

You dedicate yourself not just to studying photography tips and tutorials, but you also study the work of others. You buy books, watch more videos, and take in all the information you can from people that have made a name for themselves in the photography industry. Not only do you learn a lot about photography as an art, but you also learn more about who you are as a photographer.

Manual Mode

This is the step that will last you the rest of your days. But that doesn’t mean the learning is over. Even in manual mode, there is always something new to learn, be that a photography technique, a new post-processing program, or a new-fangled camera that has cutting-edge features. Manual mode also comes with the utmost appreciation for photography as an art and an industry. You take pride in your work, but also marvel at the incredible things other people are accomplishing that will help you stay humble and hungry to learn more.

Read the full article over at PhotographyTalk.

Source: PhotographyTalk