Why What Works (Luminous Landscape), a comment

Among the sites that foster photography, irrespective of gear, Michael Reichmann's has some wonderful insights:

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/why_what_works.shtml

I am not sure that his categories are as universal as presented:

Contrast / Gesture / Implication

Photography has a fleeting nature, and other partitions are as legitimate. Like HCB's, Barthes, Sontag's - each a decoding of their own societies.

The pragmatical approach has the advantage that you can start to work immediately with it.

I am restricting myself to B&W in order to develop a better sensibility to contrast - tones. However I can see the need for Gesture, and Implication - whatever it means (perspective?)



My 'interesting' pictures have always one of the three elements:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/amalric/sets/72157629693142319/

Or do they? I am reminded that according to Barthes it is not enough for a picture to be interesting, it must have a point (punctus).

Surely I try to avoid Sontag's "to establish within people a "chronic voyeuristic relation" to the world around them. Among the consequences of photography is that the meaning of all events is leveled and made equal".

Which is the terminal state of gear consumerism, often seen here and in other sites.

Thus LL and the best ones find themselves in the contradiction of financing themselves with gear ads, but having to foster photography by other means.

As Reichmann says:

"Why do some photographs succeeded and some not? Indeed, what makes a good photograph? Why are some worth looking at, thinking about, admiring or even hating? Why do some (most?) not even merit a second glance?

Are there rules, and who makes the rules? Then, if there are rules – who even cares? Isn't it enough to just do one's thing?

Heady questions aren't they? But these are the ones that must be asked by any photographer who wants to grow an understanding of their art and craft, and even of themselves. These are the questions that students and workshop attendees ask the most often, once they get beyond a fixation with the latest gear."

Am.

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Photostream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/amalric