Nobody Cares about your Photography!

[Julio Di Benedetto]

Im considering a camera purchase and was checking the web for info and stumble across this fellow who impressed me......and where you see photography in the title, put your chosen creative form of expression.

[petekelly]

Interesting - to a point.

The title seems to differ from his message, I suspect a title like that will be more likely to get people's attention.

'Work that matters' is obviously subjective, but I get his point (I think). To me, I think that people starting out in their creative endeavours, may well believe by reading online sources that there's a 'level playing fleld' and that everyone's thoughts on a given subject are equally valid. I have to say, I don't think that is the case.

Regarding photography, I had an active Flickr account years ago, but I gave up on it, as I felt the level of feedback wasn't honest and helpful. People there did seem to care about photography, but mostly their own ! So I guess what I'm trying to say is the 'work that matters' takes time and craft as well as talent and imagination.

[Julio Di Benedetto]

I agree with what you say overall Pete..... definitely an grabbing title.

Its the over saturation in general that caught my attention and how he recommends not making easy pictures.  I understand what that means though its sort of hard to explain.  I think we do it all the time when composing music, that is, not making "easy music".....a few sonic sketches, then and idea comes and then the music builds and things start to expand and certainly collapse until a finish and sometimes a labored work is conceived.  Sure thats not always the case and music can be much more accidental. Regarding photography, its not just taking a long walk for a few hours and seeing what images come though that is truly enjoyable and does produce..... 

Its often said here that there is just so much music being made that its near impossible to kept up and out of all of that how does one find the "work that matters".  Is it as simple as the cream will rise to the top of a bottle of milk....a bottle of milk, you mean milk came in bottles   Red top, silver top and gold top....that was how it was graded when I lived in the UK, naturally gold had the most cream, but I digress.



   

[stargazer]

He is right when he says that one should create something that matters. Otherwise, it would be nonsense. We live in a fun society with loss of values. The vegetables moldy faster. The photograph replaced the eye and thus the mind. Many moments we experience no more intense by the photograph. But if we make something with passion and sincere, with crafts and love, it will last longer than any fun and false value. That's what counts.

[Julio Di Benedetto]

Beautiful words Jana,

"Nobody Cares" are soul wrenching words and the creative projects we embark upon are full of passion, dedication, intelligence, imagination and...the list can go on and I really believe what we do, we do so that we matter...not from an egocentric perspective but one with community in mind.

I feel this way when I begin a recording.....that I am creating music that will be a part of something much more than just me, something that hopefully will contribute to the greater whole and that in itself really matters.

Whatever are our driving forces, and let them continue to drives us, we should always strive for the best which I dont see how anyone could do it any other way....there can be no half heartedness and I believe every musician on this forum feels similar and that really matters!

This is equally matched by the ambient music fans here.....they seek what matters.
 

[petekelly]

Interesting thoughts Julio and Jana. On refelection, I think his message was to try to achieve 'significant' work in a massively over-saturated and transitory world.

Ekstasis - I do hope you're being sarcastic there...

[Julio Di Benedetto]

when it comes to photography art it has to do much with the equipment you use.
Unlike painting etc According to me you need no artistic skill to push the photo button.
To have artistic taste is not hard.. it is not hard to edit photos afterwards etc..
so for me photographers are overrated,

If you have a mediocre camera no matter what you do and software tricks your photos will look uninteresting and mediocre.
I have never owned a system camera only point and shot and smartphone cameras.. I have used all those the full limit..
software tricks can help but you are still always limited to your camera..

If I get a good camera, I can make professional aristic photos too no problem, and if you buy me a flight ticket I can take photos of epic nature etc.
I have no problem to push the camera button it is not that hard.

Of case I am beeing little bit sarcastic here, of curse you need to know the technological basics of to set exposure and all that but the truth is also the newer cameras do more and more stuff automatic.

Ekstasis.....your post is very funny, I think   

[Julio Di Benedetto]

Photographer Sally Mann uses "Wet glass plate" techniques invented in around the 1850's.  No autofocus or built in image stabilizers here

https://vimeo.com/25115631

[chris23]

I enjoyed that video. A little bit. He's making some good points, but not connecting them in a way that I find useful.

1. No one cares.  He's right. No one cares about your photographs. No one cares about your music. No one cares about your writing. No one cares about your art.

Granted, some artists are capable of attracting a sizable fan base. But, even in those cases, I think a lot of followers are just bandwagon fans. Very few people will be able to connect in a deep emotional way to anything you produce.

Once an artist fully appreciates that, I think it can be a source of liberty rather than a source of despair.

2. Do work that is meaningful.

Sure. I think everyone strives to do that. The problem is that he is suggesting this as a means to make people care about your work. I think that is a mistake.

I have an Ayn Rand way of thinking about art: The most important critic is yourself, and an artist must always be accountable to that critic.

If you're trying to make a living off your art, of course, then you have to appease others. And that is where the gray lines emerge.

But, outside of commerce, the goal should never be to create art that others will care about. It should always be about creating art that you care about. And one of the joys in life is finding those connections--meeting people who resonate with your art--whether it is visual, aural, or writing--in the way that you do. But that is a bonus; it isn't the endgame.
 

[stargazer]

Photographer Sally Mann uses "Wet glass plate" techniques invented in around the 1850's.  No autofocus or built in image stabilizers here

https://vimeo.com/25115631

The video portrait reminds me of the first women in astronomy and electronic music. A great find, Julio!

[petekelly]

I enjoyed that video. A little bit. He's making some good points, but not connecting them in a way that I find useful.

1. No one cares.  He's right. No one cares about your photographs. No one cares about your music. No one cares about your writing. No one cares about your art.

Perhaps 'cares' is not the most appropriate word. People are still 'fans' of people's work in the same way as they always have been - people look out for the new work of the artists they like. Just because there are zillions of people creating work now hasn't changed that.
 

[ffcal]

But, outside of commerce, the goal should never be to create art that others will care about. It should always be about creating art that you care about. And one of the joys in life is finding those connections--meeting people who resonate with your art--whether it is visual, aural, or writing--in the way that you do. But that is a bonus; it isn't the endgame.

I agree, Chris.  I would go a step further, and say that, at least for me, the more I am immersed in the process of creation, and less preoccupied with how it will sound to others, the more likely I am to create something that is more pure and to my liking.  I think the narrator's view is a little too binary; he seems to suggest that you either cater to someone else's tastes or you try to create something "meaningful."  I think there is a whole other middle ground--a process of trial and error that requires both an interest in the creative process itself and a baseline of technical knowledge that will help control or facilitate the conditions under which you create your music.  That is the part of the process of creating music that I enjoy the most.  Considering what is most "meaningful" for me comes much later during the editing process and in deciding which pieces should not only be finished but also be included in a release I would make publicly available.

Forrest

[Julio Di Benedetto]

But, outside of commerce, the goal should never be to create art that others will care about. It should always be about creating art that you care about. And one of the joys in life is finding those connections--meeting people who resonate with your art--whether it is visual, aural, or writing--in the way that you do. But that is a bonus; it isn't the endgame.

I agree, Chris.  I would go a step further, and say that, at least for me, the more I am immersed in the process of creation, and less preoccupied with how it will sound to others, the more likely I am to create something that is more pure and to my liking.  I think the narrator's view is a little too binary; he seems to suggest that you either cater to someone else's tastes or you try to create something "meaningful."  I think there is a whole other middle ground--a process of trial and error that requires both an interest in the creative process itself and a baseline of technical knowledge that will help control or facilitate the conditions under which you create your music.  That is the part of the process of creating music that I enjoy the most.  Considering what is most "meaningful" for me comes much later during the editing process and in deciding which pieces should not only be finished but also be included in a release I would make publicly available.

Forrest

Very well put Forrest and I do agree with you and Chris yet I didn't get that he was suggesting to create works so that people would care about them, which of course is what makes a discussion like this interesting......peoples interpretations vary.

What I come away with most from the video is the challenge.  He is calling anyone who listens to task.  Dont give up.  Push forward.  Fail, then fail again and discover what being true to yourself means and dont listen to "Nobody" 

Personally, its has always been about the journey and not the destination.

As Garrison Keillor says at the end of each Writers Almanac on National Public Radio......"Be Well, do good work and stay in touch"   Perhaps this is all that we can do.

[stargazer]

I also do not think that there actual is a difference between the authentic and the creative. Art and artifice belong to the natural, to nature, as commercial and underground are relative to each other and arise out of each other. I think that there are the things, that are, that should one lift out and appreciate. This is the ground of the importance and art in general in my eyes. Creating for others is not necessarily of other quality. It's maybe almost as if you entering into a connection. Creating something that others do not like is not necessarily of other quality. Perhaps it is only ahead of its time. Of course there is also much waste and a lot of over-attention and a lot of inauthenticity in today's world.