A picture usually doesn't tell the truth. Just as any writer, the photographer is hugely subjective. Even if he/she tries not to be. Why subjective? In primis by pinpointing space and time. You decide to point your camera in a certain direction, don't you? And do you press the shutter randomly? I guessed so! Next by selecting a frame, focal length, aperture, shutter time, etc ... And don't forget the influence of your presence as a photographer. Hence I would say that photography is five dimensional:
Now say 'Hi!' to my grand mother. She is 93 year old and just moved into her new apartment. I won't go into details, but she is fairly unhappy with the recent change of environment. I was asked to take a photo to be featured on the change of address card. Look at her expression above (click to zoom) and then compare to the photo that is actually distributed:
Dimensions 1, 2 and 3 were unchanged (space, time, camera setup). But the impact of dimensions 4 (photographers influence) and 5 (post-processing) is noticeable. Friends and family will receive the second photo, a card that shows a lady that's happy with her recent move. I prefer the first photo.
Note: a small reminder for who who cares -> see the labels to check what equipment I used.
- space (counts as one dimension);
- time;
- camera setup (aperture, shutter time, etc);
- influence of the photographer to its environment;
- and post processing.
Of course the above comes all in handy to create the picture you aim for. There are enough possibilities to influence the result. In fact, a studio photographer meticulously influences the above-mentioned properties. But same counts for a war or street photographer. Pure objective registration doesn't exist in my opinion.
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| Oma (monochrome) - SMC Pentax-A 50mm F1.7 |
Now say 'Hi!' to my grand mother. She is 93 year old and just moved into her new apartment. I won't go into details, but she is fairly unhappy with the recent change of environment. I was asked to take a photo to be featured on the change of address card. Look at her expression above (click to zoom) and then compare to the photo that is actually distributed:
 |
| Oma (color) - SMC Pentax-A 50mm F1.7 |
Dimensions 1, 2 and 3 were unchanged (space, time, camera setup). But the impact of dimensions 4 (photographers influence) and 5 (post-processing) is noticeable. Friends and family will receive the second photo, a card that shows a lady that's happy with her recent move. I prefer the first photo.
Note: a small reminder for who who cares -> see the labels to check what equipment I used.
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