We need to do some checks on our camera in a certain order with the purpose of taking a photo. Some of you may not know these at all or just forgot them. I have prepared a checklist to help photographers that I even use myself. In this article I assume that you know the basic concepts of photography.
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White Balance in Photography
One day you are walking in a forest all by yourself. Moreover it is midnight. It is pitch black. Suddenly an alien appears before you. Luckily you happen to have your camera with you. Moreover with flash. However your camera remains in the settings you have done during the shooting yesterday. You take a completely isolated photo of the alien in the middle of the darkness.
Continue readingHuman Characters and Photography Criticism
Human is a complex organism. It is not easy to define it simply within certain rules because there are gray areas in between the blacks and whites in its decisions and behaviors.
I tried to classify types of people we encounter in our daily lives in small groups and identify their characteristics. I think you might be interested if you have a job in which you are in constant contact with people or if you are a story writer or photographer. I will provide a few suggestions for photographers following the definitions.
Intellectuals:
- They criticize too much.
- They are picky.
- They are often unhappy and desperate.
- They do not have time to produce useful things.
Artistic people:
- Their egos go through the roof.
- They do not accept criticism.
- They are observers.
- They are free-spirited, dreamy and creative.
- They love to take risks.
- They are unstable.
- You can have an unforgettably beautiful dinner with these people, but you cannot live with them in the same house.
The engineer type:
- They seek a logical explanation for everything. They think everything has a cause.
- They trust machines more than they trust people. For example, they may take a wrong turn even if they know the right way just because of the navigation device.
- They are reliable.
- Their actions are easily predictable, so they are boring.
The ambitious type:
- They work a lot.
- They divide people and things as those that serve their purpose and those that do not.
- They lack empathy.
- They are often successful.
Pessimists:
- They focus on the 10% empty part of the glass. Never share your dreams with these people as they may let you down easily.
- They get sick easily and frequently.
- Sometimes they are not even aware of their irrational approach to events.
- They have trust issues.
- Intelligent people are generally pessimistic. Being intelligent means being able to establish links between events; therefore these people find it easier to see the dark future of our world compared to other people.
Optimists:
- They are usually faithful and happy.
- They live long.
- Their vision is not broad. They are far from growth and change.
Entrepreneurs:
- They are dreamers.
- They love taking risks.
- They usually fail. They are the few popular and successful ones of all the people we know.
- They hate to work on a salary basis. They do not want to take orders. They are free-spirited.
Officer spirited people:
- They do not like risks.
- Their perception has grown weak. They refrain from producing anything including thought.
- They do not like hard work.
The socially disabled:
- They have plenty of fears, concerns and addictions.
- They are unable to communicate.
- They do not acknowledge their situation.
Emotional people:
- Their perception is very strong.
- They are extremely empathetic.
- They are prone to depression.
Let’s assume you are a photographer and you want to show your photos to the people of the above-defined characters.
- If you want to get criticism, refer to intellectuals and pessimists. But chill out and be prepared for the worst from the start.
- You can get interesting suggestions and feedback from entrepreneurs.
- If you are pursuing meaningless approvals, show your photos to officers and optimists.
- Ambitious people will try to find out how you took that photo and do the same instead of criticizing it.
- Emotional people may interpret the details that even you are not able to see in your own photo. From this point of view, it is an interesting experience to consult them.
- Do not expect a positive or negative feedback from the socially disabled. They either make no comments or you cannot understand what they say.
- The engineer type will be interested in your camera more than your photos. So, do not expect to get a feedback from them.
- What artists will say depends on their current mood. You may get a very successful feedback, be ignored, or be criticized severely.
In other words, if you receive poor reviews, do not worry about your photos too much or if you get good criticism, do not rejoice too much because they may not be about you.
So we have to keep in mind that characteristics of a person can vary depending on the time, place and mood. On the other hand, most of these characters are likely to be seen together. For example, an intellectual or an artist may also be pessimistic or an entrepreneur may be ambitious. But do not expect an artist to be officer spirited. When it comes to people, there are always exceptions and none of us is perfect; what makes us perfect is our differences.
Photography and Art
Especially together with the digital photography, I see that concepts such as photographer, artist, photography artist, fine art photography are used wrongly by the society. In this article I will transfer my own definitions after briefly describing these concepts.
Continue readingPerformance of Canon 5D Under Extreme Natural Conditions
Independent organizations who assess performances of cameras usually share the results that they get from tests of ISO performance (noise level), continuous shooting speed, sensor capacity. But one day when your camera stops working, facts that it has 50 megapixels, being able to take 100 frames of pictures, and its ability to take shiny photos of ISO12800 do not matter. If I am in a hurry, I prefer a Fiat that can move to a Ferrari with a flat tire.
Continue readingA Photography Project – Abandoned lives of Chernobyl
In 1986, an accident occurred at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant inside the boundaries of present-day Ukraine and marked as one of history’s greatest tragedies of humanity.
The idea of going to Pripyat, the city where Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant was located, for a photo book project was exciting as well as scary. Because, the radiation around the plant was still above the normal level and even above the danger limit in some places. I organized a trip to Pripyat with two of my friends in May 2013 after receiving necessary approvals from the Ukrainian authorities providing that we travel in relatively safe areas accompanied by a guide. We spent two days in pursuit of traces of abandoned lives in dilapidated buildings almost lost in the woods, smelling of damp. We were careful not to touch any object while we were wandering in places full of dust, rust and mold, which were plundered in the course of time.
Continue readingWhat Do We Feel When We Look At a Photo?
”Why do we like or dislike a photo?”, ”What are the stages of evaluating a photo?”, ”What do we think when we look at a photo?” I will try to find answers for such questions.
When we look at a photo, our evaluations are ordered from subjective to objective. If we do not experience hesitation during our subjective evaluation, meaning if there is no subjective idea that pushes us to make a comment about the photo positively or negatively, we proceed to the objective evaluation stages.
Continue readingLight from Middle East: The Exhibition
Photography is a persuasive and powerful way of expression. Its accessibility and immediacy makes it a perfect option for artists confronting the political upheavals and social challenges of the Middle East nowadays.
The current closed exhibition: Light from the Middle East, New Photography has presented work of numerous artists from all over the Middle East, straddling from North Africa up to Central Asia, those who are living in dispersion and in the regions.
Continue readingAn Insight to Blind Photography
Can blind people really take photographs? Can they capture the moment, just like every other normal person would? The answer is yes, they can. While we must have seen the famous Blind Photographer Gary Waite in the Nokia Advertisement, every single blind person yearns to cherish the joy of photography as well.
Continue readingCan Photography Change the World?
Photography is being used as a device to change the way that people learn in fields of community development, education and public health. Photovoice is a method of learning where people take photos of scenes in their local neighbourhood that can then be used for research purposes and to learn more about any given community. There is much scope for photovoice to learn about community and put together programmes that can help poorer communities to develop. Needs of a poor community are depicted in the photos giving a narrative of what daily life is like and how it needs to be changed.
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