Vision + Action = Awesomeness

The Shape of Light IV by Joel Tjintjelaar (used with permission)

What makes a great image? Composition, lighting, timing, post-processing? All of those are important, but they won’t get you very far without vision. Vision sounds like a very vague concept, but I like to describe it as the ability to see what a shot or a scene could become when approached in a certain way. However, you can have lots of vision and still not produce any great images if you don’t take action and actually create the shot you envisioned.

A good example is the above image by Joel Tjintjelaar. It shows a building in the center of Rotterdam. I have walked past this building many times, and so have probably millions of other people. But they didn’t take the time to look at it, didn’t have a vision or didn’t take action. That’s one of the interesting things about photography: it’s always possible to find new and interesting shots in places that you would think have been photographed to death.

But where does inspiration come in? To me personally, inspiration isn’t something that just happens. Often I set out with a certain goal or rough idea, and along the way some other subject or angle catches my eye. Inspiration is something that fuels your imagination and gives you the drive to keep going. But you have to get going in the first place. The more you explore, the more inspiration.

By the way, also make sure to check out Joel’s website bwvision.com for more amazing long exposure photography (and some interesting tutorials), and his Google+ profile.