Aimee and I overheard an interesting back and forth at the Des Moines Arts Festival.
In one of the photography booths, a guy was flipping through some matted prints.
He pulls one out (I think this is the one),
and innocently asks in broken English how he (the photographer) got the colors and if he used Photoshop.
The photographer responds, "What? Thirty second exposure. Put the camera on a tripod. Get a clue."
The guy looks at him for a few seconds trying to figure out a proper response. Finally he says, "Well... this is a very nice picture."
Photographer replies curtly, "They're all nice pictures, come on."
I'm not sure if it's a major faux pas to ask a photographer if he uses Photoshop, but his reaction was way off, especially since he obviously uses something on his pictures. Unless he lives in a magical land where everything is in black and white except select colors.
I really wanted to tell him he uses too much Photoshop*. ...And do you really have to travel to Croatia to find a cracked wall to photograph?
This is why I love Flickr... there are so many amazing photographs you can find by people off the street (or people you know). Yes, many of them are heavily Photoshopped (just look at the "more properties" of any neat-looking picture and look for the Software: Adobe Photoshop). Flickr members are usually pretty friendly too, and are happy to talk about their pictures in the comments. But all in all, if you like gawking at and talking photography, it's the place to go. Not, apparently, the Des Moines Arts Festival (although I'm sure they're not all jerks).
*Don't get me wrong, I think there is a place for Photoshop, but when does it go from a (capital-p Photograph to a Photo-illustration? How many pixels can you change? Sure, I've had to use it myself. But I think it's better when you are upfront about how much Photoshop you've done. You could be a horrible photographer but great at Photoshop and come out with something amazing... so what are you: a photographer or a digital artist?
Posted by alangage at July 1, 2007 10:10 AM
Comments
If that's the photograph in question, I'd say he's an okay photographer and that his photoshop skills suck. The sky is an abomination. Maybe he's going to sell them at Target, though.
Posted by: Dan at July 1, 2007 03:13 PM
Thirty second exposure, huh? I'll have to remember that next time I want to splice scary clouds onto a sunset.
Posted by: Jon at July 1, 2007 04:58 PM
I know.. you'd think clouds would be move somewhere in 30 seconds.
Posted by: Andy at July 1, 2007 05:54 PM
What's with the boats, too? Why are they sort of fuzzy? Is that supposed to be mist or something?
Posted by: Jon at July 1, 2007 07:57 PM
The clouds are mirrored right in the middle, too -- making it that much worse. The stuff at Target is much better than this.
Posted by: Dan at July 2, 2007 11:41 AM
From my meager experiences, no, it shouldn't be considered a faux pas to ask a photographer if they have used Photoshop. If I had been asked that on a photo that hadn't been messed with, I'd take it as a sort of compliment...that I was able to do something interesting with just the camera that the person didn't think was possible...that there was some skill involved. Also, when trying to sell photos, it's best not to call potential buyers idiots for taking an interest in your artwork. Sounds like the guy's a hack.
Posted by: Rua at July 2, 2007 11:46 PM
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