Stop Taking 'Nice' Photos
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- Опубликовано: 2 окт 2024
- Don't fall into the trap of taking nice photos because you think you should. This was a hard-learned lesson for me but once I learned it, I really understood what my value was as a photographer.
If you’re interested in more of my work, check out my last book ‘So Far So Good’ www.maxkent.co...
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Thank you all for the time you take to watch my videos!
Max
You assume Im capable of taking a single nice photo?
I’d rather you weren’t 💪 even better
Amen! I'm sill waiting to take my FIRST nice photo!
my parents said your photos were nice haha, dont worry
This comment though! 🤣
😂😅
I love how his tattoos just blend with the shirt he's wearing.
i was just thinking the same thing man
I hate tattoes. They will look like crap when they are a few years old.
No you
@@Traitorman..Proverbs26.11that's cool bro but nobody asked
@@Rena152
Just in case you are confused.
I wrote two sentences. One an opinion and one a statement.
And as you said.
You’re cool, but nobody asked you to comment.
haha jokes on you! my photos are either underexposed, overexposed or out of focus
Well that’s not “ nice” =success
@nonculus I do that so much, I've started to tell people it's intentional and it's my "photographic style."
Mom, is that you?
Even out of focus and clumsy photos can be great! try this: go out with your camera and decide to only shoot out of focus photos on that day and try to find ways that it looks good to you.
What camera(s) do you use?
Daido Moriyama made a whole career out of that
I've been shooting for a decade, but I feel like I'm lost identity wise. This is a great reminder, beautiful video.
We all feel that way sometimes! And sometimes you think you’ve got it and then you feel like you lose it again 🙏
yes it is
If nice photos make you happy, go nice. I don’t care if im nice or something else and dont care after 19 years. It's probably a random mess of daily enjoyment and absolute boringness for most others. This is what it was for most before social media ruined that fun for this new generation. Embrace the nice if you're having fun!
I agree with you 100%
you're right but this is advice for professional photographers not hobbyists or people just taking photos to remember their holiday
@@swiggityswoogity961nothing in his video suggests he is talking exclusively about for professionals only. He actually says in the video for professional professionals and nonprofessional work.
If bro is intentionally out of focus that’s next level
AND lit from above with a pretty unpleasant industrial looking light, arms filled with tacky sticker-tattoos. Everyone; You do you, but personally, it makes it hard for me to take advice around aesthetics from someone, when this is the presentation they go with.
@@thomasoringso what do you look like that makes you a legitimate artist, then?
@@thomasoring Sure, criticize the technical aspects like focus and lighting, but not taking a person serious for the stylistic choice of tattoos one has is just you making yourself look ridiculous
Just take YOUR photos YOUR way. If others don't like 'em - tough! It ain't rocket science.
@4th_Lensman_of_the_apocalypse So what?! If you enjoyed takin' 'em and like the results. - jobs a good un!
mood
@4th_Lensman_of_the_apocalypse if the person taking the pictures likes them then thats all that really matters
@4th_Lensman_of_the_apocalypse We're just talking about hobbies man. Nobody has any obligation to be good at them, they're things people do in their free time.
Yeah, I've heard about just few of the rules, and sometimes I don't care to take a picture of something, and use it as a tool to give lil factors, but usually when I would like to take a picture even in my way it's surprising how very simple pictures beat my "better" shots.
I'm not photographer, I just got few picks on Google, and one of them works as an ad for one place. They got basic coffee on top of a town's tallest building, and it is quite popular as people who live there use it regularly in summertime.
Your shirt images matching your tattoo style is underrated.
The “they suck” in the thumbnail is killing me 😂 love it
One thing that helped me personally is to just take a picture that I "think looks good" and then in post look at what made me feel this was and simply double down on that to hone in more of a style. This is in opposition to finding "what looks good" with the help of a set of rules that is.
Not sure if this is helpful to anyone, but hey.
Man, I've been shooting for like 10 years and always falling into ruts - and have a degree in photography too. I think this lesson was more valuable than anything I learned in my 3 years at Uni.
The algorithm is scaring me at times. Just getting into photography. I have a lot of “nice” photos, but only very few are “great” to me. Thanks for showing me and others what really matters. Cheers
Your video popped up in my recommendations today and that's crazy because that's exactly what I was thinking about yesterday. I went on a nostalgic trip looking at some old photos and I realised that they had so much soul, much more than my photography nowadays. I actually took a break from photography because I felt like I was only creating cold and soulless images. Going back to images I captured years ago (way before I learned all there is to learn about the technical parts of photography) showed me what I've been looking for and lost over the years. Your words hit home and resonated a lot with what I'm feeling right now so thank you!
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
I’ve been shooting photos professionally for more than 40 years and I still feel my “style” is continuing to evolve as a photographer. At times I wonder if I have an identifiable style even though I do have a style… As we grow our way of making images changes and our “style” changes in the process. Good video for making us all look at ourselves.
Great stuff. Short and sweet. I'm grateful to say that I don't find myself too worried about doing things a certain way when I'm out shooting. I just do my thing the best I can with whatever conditions I'm in. It's very low-pressure while still striving for great quality.
I am an english teacher. Your message is equally applicable to language study and teaching.
I think this applies to anything involving creativity. Whenever we create or teach or converse about something, we're generally not just trying to capture and describe reality, but rather to convey how our human sensory and emotional perceptions filter that reality. Subjectivity is just more interesting than objectivity
This really applies to all the arts, not just photography. Rules are good to learn, but you also need to learn when and how to break them
Exactly, you need to master the techniques before you can brake free and use those techniques for what you want to show
also don't try to chase an identity, just doing what you're deeply passionate about is what your identity actually is (not what's supposed to be "nice").
And when you think you have developed a style/identity don't harshly stick to it all the time, that's what gets you burned out after some time. Still always try to experiment, it's about lifelong evolving
Finding your own style is so valuable. There are certain photographers that just have their own style and you can spot it quickly. Such good advice here.
“Nice” is basically palatable to non-artists. Life’s too short to take photos that are expected, we have to capture photos that inspire us
You’re just gatekeeping who is and is not an artist. More people are inspired by “nice” photos than your edgelord crud. Yes they understand it, they just prefer a nice landscape. It’s more inspiring to them.
@@PippetWhippet No one is gatekeeping anything, literally everything is available to view online. It's a matter of liking and sharing work, which I actively do by actually sharing photos I like regularly. I don't hide or gatekeep artists, that's up to others to pay attention and form their own opinions over what they like and don't like, what inspires them. That's an individual pursuit.
*edit: everyone can take a photo, it doesn't mean that they regard themselves to be a photographer and/or artist
@@danicee You literally said who you think the artists are and who they are not. If that isn't gatekeeping or an attempt at it what in the world is?
@@Anon54387 It's not gatekeeping, it's clarifying the definition of the word "artist"
but ain't tht gatekeeping? The term changing?
I feel like I found this video at the perfect time. It has really resonated with me. Thanks.
Photography is like a mirror, it's not about the mirror itself but what's in front of it.
deep
OU NICE ANAOLOGY
I found that trying too hard is how you ruin a photo. You can feel the mechanical stiffness of the photographer in a perfectly composed photo, the soul is lost, Muscles are always moving or resting, never stiff and still, and that tension really shows when you ask someone to pose. My best photos were always quick little shots in the middle of something. Yea focus is often bad, and the subject is pulling a funny face, but the authenticity is there.
Good points. Being too perfect leaves us distracted. The pictorialists were onto something. But if when people start looking for shadows instead of light and feeling instead of perfection. Everything changes.
Im not that big into photography but this video was very mind opening, even for other creative work. Thank you very much!
i really needed to hear that, i''ve been struggling to find motivation to go out there and take photos
I agree it seems that the waves of thinking "I really am getting this figured out now!" after every little breakthrough is somewhat universal for most photographers. At the end you touched on that having a clearly identifiable style is a big thing. While I agree somewhat, Ive found for myself trying too hard to have a 'distinct' style can become a little contrived.
What I find more important is to just keep following whatever keeps me interested which I think will naturally lead to a style as more of an emergent property.
Enjoyed your thoughts :)
this kind of advice can apply to any creative hobby or profession, great video
such a valuable message you are conveying right here, this applies to any art form really
take personal photos. interesting photos. not good photos.
You're right, and it's ok to experiment. What helps me is spontaneity. That's related to my personal project/concept but when you got less time to think it sometimes lead to surprising results. Just have to get better at it now.
I'm really grateful to capture something transient, like a car going by or the moon that's between two trees that won;t be there for long
I think rules are important. You need to know them by heart. When you know how to set your camera up for what you envision in your mind withouth having to think much about it, you're at a proper stage to think about "style." I wouldn't play them against each other.
This is such a great advice for any type of art. Thank you, great vid, great advice
seen a few on this theme lately. good one. photo is like sport in many ways. you need to know how to handle the ball, to make offensive and defensive moves, to pass, to communicate to a teammate you're open, to confuse your opponents. those are the rules. but great players dont just run the drills. they do the drills until they're reflex, then they get out there against players who also know the drills and they all try to fake each other out
Great analogy. I think in art, and especially photography, we forget the importance of practice, of drills, of honing skills. You can’t go out everyday and think you are going to make a masterpiece. You need to practice. You need to put in the hours with the camera (and without the camera) looking, seeing, visualizing. How many sketches did DaVinci make before he finally painted Mona Lisa?
Athletes spend thousands of hours training, practicing, working on basic skills, obsessing over details of their performance. Then, on game day they go out there and perform and hopefully it all comes together. Sometimes it doesn’t.
As a photographer, I need to accept that most days are practice days. Most photos I take on practice days will be nice but not great. But that’s okay because it’s all training (as long as I am aware and open to learning). Experiment. Fail. Learn. Then when inspiration, conditions, the location, or the client are right, then I can put all that training to use. And hopefully come away with something a few degrees above nice.
you got some points i can agree on about having personal style etc. but there is nothing wrong with taking nice photos. don't fall into a trap that every single picture you take need to tell a story or be a part of larger serie or need to mean 'something' or be 'important'. that can kill the pleasure in photographing. after maybe 5-7y of shooting i had this mindset of not shooting 'nice' photos and it just stressed me out and i almost finished doing it. after 15y i appreciate shooting 'nice' photos because it is just fun. i take my point&shoot or a small dslr and a few rolls of film when i travel and i love the pictures :)
What I really understood in the last few weeks about photography when I decided to come back to it - that it doesn't matter if you know how to use your camera right or you take photos according to rules - the best pictures are those that either captures "the moment" or an emotion. If you know the rules and camera's parameters, that's even better, but something that you can't stage is the best because nobody else in this world will be able to capture the same. So sometimes, those simple photos with a "soapbar" (that's how we used to call those (now) old digital cameras for family vacations or celebrations) are better than the ones captured with a professional camera by professional photographer - they have much more value.
Some of the greatest musicians in the world cant read music and yet they are still among the greatest
This is what bothers me about the modern trend of copying the exact image of famous photographs. Don't be a clone, learn the techniques and then put your spin on the image. Try a different angle, different time of day, change things up and be you. If people are putting your work on their walls then you're succeeding.
This is so spot on
Dude you made the perfect point nailing the focus on the background 👌🏻
Haha! I literally only just noticed that, it’s tough shooting and editing on the road! 🔥
I think I can give an advice, althrough I don't make photos in real life, only in video games (mostly motorsport racing).
I find a style, composition which I really liked and I used that to create nice photos, but once I shoot a photo little bit differently and it became my favorite.
So overall always think outside of what worked until now and how would you do that differently
Sometimes you just find the videos you need and the thoughts you need to express so that you can grow as a creative. This video came at just the right time
This is good to hear dude
@@maxkent I’ve made videos before and done lots of creative work that’s technically well made but I always felt that I needed to be more bold to take a true step forward. Your video helped me see that more clearly and listen to my own feelings. It’s like getting advice you can’t take from yourself, even when you know it’s true. So thanks.
when I shoot, I need to determine if I am "taking a photo" or "capturing a moment" because If I am doing the first, I will go out of my way to make sure it looks as clean as possible; but if I am doing the later, I will capture not only the main subject and what is in my foreground.
When I'm shooting an assignment I like to start with the safe, expected photos, then get more creative. Risk failure after I've banked a safe few.
"Rules help you make nice photos." "Nice is the enemy of great". Key takeaways.
Part of the process in learning the technique and then you brake free. First time you follow the recipe, then you brake free and change in the way that suits you.
Wisdom just when I needed it 🙏
It’s a reminder for myself as much as anything 🌞
This right here!
Took me years to realize this, and he's spot on
Good u pointed this out, can recognize myself in this.
Bro, thanks for the reality check
"stop having fun, it sucks"
I think most people would agree there two kinds of nice photos, the ones where something interesting is happening makes you end up staring at it for a while.
The other is the one you put as a wallpaper and then forget about it the day after.
1:33 nah fr this is so true not just to photography but for anything art related
one of the best content I have seen recently. brutally honest - love it!
Love this channel
Though I agree with what you're saying, learning the "rules" is a must though to be able to find your own style. MOST photographers with a distinct style still uses compositions made by rule of thirds. For example your photo at 3:05. That's 100% rule of thirds. 3:08 is just a snapshot with your editing style to it. 3:13 is also rule of thirds. ETC. But as I said, I agree with you need to develop your own style, but getting there is by learning all the "boring" stuff first.
The actual secret is pointing the camera at something cool-looking and pressing the button, everything else is at best like a high-quality cover on a book. It enhances the experience, it influences how people perceive the contents, but it doesn't actually enhance the contents themselves, which are universally agreed to be the most important thing.
It is not about “nice”. It is about formulation… Masters like Saul Leiter or Haas they all shot nice photos. They just formed their own styles which differentiate them from others.
Great vid and great photos.
A bit of constructive feedback:
It felt like you reiterated the same point several times through the video in much the same way each time. I’d have been interested to hear more about that experience with the cover photo for example, and you could have used more of a storytelling approach to getting your point across.
I’ve subscribed and looking forward to your future vids, keep it up 👍
3:21 : the lick!
You're good 💯
Thid apply to other art form aswell, that is why chris christodoulou's risk of rain albums are my favourites. very very good video.
ayo i fuck with you max kent, hella nice video
🔥
Learn the rules then break them isn't just a photography mantra - it works for all art, from the art of skateboarding to the art of cooking and everything in between
Great video, honest and true - this is why people feel like impostors
I know this is about photos but i feel like this could be applied to music as well, I've heard hundreds of songs that all sound the same, with a basic structure and chord progression, that still sound "nice" but never great
Great discussion Max, spot on. It’s easier said than done I think, especially while traveling, to avoid those touristy shots. Enjoyed the one-on-one format too. 👏
So it's basically just take pictures that you think look nice
Bro just subtly stated the rule of all art: do it your way 💯
Was staying out of focus for the first half of the video a metaphor? Hehe. Great video and really important advice. :)
I like to just do this: if I like the shot, keep it. If it sucks, delete. And just taking tons of them and if something works, keep doing that.
its like drawing artists and their specific art styles
You might want to study the rule of keeping your subject in focus mate
Love this!! 🔥
Yeah. There are a lot of photographers that do beautiful work that looks the same.
'Nice' Video 😀
Great reminder!
true af. i used to think about taking *only* nice photos basically for external validation, but now i just shoot anything that's interesting and made me want to lift my camera up no matter how "not nice" it looked.
Take pictures of nothing. Lots of spontaneous images. And you will evolve into your owns style. Reqires lots of practice, stamina, critical sense and introspection. Works for me but may not work for you... 😊
I am because of we. TRUTH ARE HIS WORDS. I bought my first camera exactly 1 year ago. Some people go outside every now and then, I go inside every now and then. I carry a slide with me, I now frame throughout my day, asking how the image makes me feel. My camera case is strapped on my belt. Our lives are worth documenting and I do. I seldom see what others see, maybe because I have no television,email,social media accounts and time thieving acquaintances- I shoot/view dozens of images per day- LIFE HAPPENING THE WAY I FEEL IT. Photographers,instructors, artist and I myself believe and express the images are remarkable. Be true to you. Shoot for you,share with us. Heal,be well,create,be you and LOVE US
I love me an ugly photo
I like this advice. I feel the similar way in the context of drawing and design. People can make realistic works, or conventionally good designs and logos. But giving it some personal touch is something I usually fail because I was afraid that "personal" or "stylized" works cannot be seen as "good". I was seen that my style was eccentric, unconventional. And I needed to follow certain rules
But you're right, there are people who wants to have your work the way you do it, and that's why they asked YOU out of all people
Great video. Something I needed to hear right now
I was so confused because I’m in St Ives right now and did very similar shots haha
Nice
I generally have come to know that in creative fields for some people the less you know the better you’re off. People get stuck on all these rules and never seem to just enjoy the experience.
that's what happens to teh England football team...
Well said, Max.
I think there is a balance between a Nice Photo and a Crap Photo. I see so many people take nice photos but I also see others take crap photos of some rubbish in an alleyway or some graffiti sprayed abandoned building. Just a waste of film/electricity. While others try to copy others edginess not taking the time to think "Ok yeah this person is famous but why? Is this any good?". I operate this way. ALWAYS mind your backgrounds and take whatever you want but never take a photo simply for the sake of taking a photo. Have some reason to shoot the shutter button, film, digital or even cellphone. Anyways nice vid
The best camera
Also him **shows a Nikon**
3:25 it's an amazing photo
Not gonna lie, indeed a nice video.
Love how relaxed you are.
Can you perhaps tell me, what microphone do you use in this video?
Peace
yeah i fully agree. i have a background in film and i think this applies very well to my workflow too. the media landscape has become very oversaturated especially with colorful lighting, symmetrical composition and analog or old formats (film, vhs). we are at the point at which something that was considered beautiful 10 to 15 years ago is now used by people for their instagram reels and truthfully, it still looks nice and stylish, but it's also a sign of empty and shallow art. perhaps i watch too much experimental stuff, but i absolutely prefer when something looks more raw and unadulterated. i'll always have a deep respect for the movies of dogma 95 and those inspired by neorealism for rejecting what's considered conventionally beautiful in art.
nah my parents are brutally honest
Next time you have an epiphany don’t forget to focus on yourself explaining stuff rather than on the background though 🤭
be an artist not a technician
What a way of putting it 🔥
Great video, love your work. Photography improves when you adopt the mindset of taking photos for yourself, not trying to take a picture you think will be viral on IG. I have been shooting since 1979 and with a SLR since 1988. I am a multi discipline photographer. I feel shooting less photos, slowing down gets you more interesting shots.
Just about like with anything else in life, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath."
Hey Max, where did you get that shirt from? Its very nice!
I think it was from Berlin! Second hand store called Humana! Will never be found again 💀
I will say something controversial. getting old ancient digital camera is so much fun. And by old I mean OLD. Less than 2megapixels. hopefully even LESS. All modern photos look similar. Super clean, super shallow colors (realistic) and you take 50 photos of every subject.
Meanwhile I am out here, taking pictures on a floppy disk camera at 640x480 or slightly above that... and the pics are so grainy, so unique. The colors are so wrong yet so amazing and the picture taking MATTERS. These cameras are so slow, I can't take 50 pics of 1 subject. I can take 1pic every 5-10 seconds. And I don't have a lot of settings.
So what ends up happening is that I take care, shoot and take what I get. Love it. And the upside is - cheap and no 10 lenses. The grain, artifacts, wrong colors. It's what stands out to me nowadays. And not achieved through editing for me
in the modern era anyone can take a quality photo. smartphones and intelligent camera's to most of the work for you.
imo, and something that sells and is distinguishable and somewhat unique is the knowledge to take "bad" pictures that look good. Applying technique and skill like proper composition and lighting etc to a blurred, out of focus, shaky, over/underexposed photo is what makes the difference today
Kinda sounds like making music strictly based on theory versus just making music and maybe describing it and understanding why something worked the way it did with theory. Though theory can also give a reasonable starting point or skeleton to flesh out and diverge from. Of course, when you're working with a client on something commercial and there are expectations like it's for a wedding/event or some marketing thing or something, they probably do want something more down to earth and by the numbers.
pro tip: take shit photos. I use a camera from 1952 with 4 shutter speeds and ideally expired film. Never have your subject centered in frame and always over or under expose.
This video is incredibly reassuring. I’m still quite a novice but the way I’d been looking at it was just like any art, every photographer should have a personal style rather than adhere to a super rigid set of rules. I’ve been approaching my shots from the perspective of how can I show people the world as I see it? It’s the only art I’ve tried taking up where I feel a sense of satisfaction, as a result.
you are right!