Sitting in my studio with my Mentor Student Bill during our regular weekly class we decided to work on a new image Bill had made this last week. The image as described by Bill was not a “great image” but it had elements that he wanted to work with and explore. Cul.

I always give the advice that if you only work with your best images you are really missing the learning opportunity that other works you make offer. Working with images that are not quite 100% for one reason or another really releases the creative juices and allows you to take chances you would not with your precious perfect images.

The tipping point in this image was the initial crop. The monument was not the subject of the scene, in fact it hurt the image as it separated the scene into two distinct parts…the snow and color on the mountain was the subject and something which could be explored. Bill confessed to me after an hour of water boarding and general CIA approved questioning techniques that his initial instinct was to just shoot the mountain with the snow and color but he decided that the Monument would maybe make it better…(Bill will be forgiven for this lack of self confidence after he has read the Figital Revolution Manifesto 20 times as a penance.) So, after an hour of editing and working with color and local contrast the final image conveys the energy Bill was looking for in the first place.

What does this mean?…don’t discard an image too fast….the process of making an image can be very rewarding in itself and it is a great learning tool with regards to understanding your work and developing style.

Now go dig out those dusty negatives and digital files and get to work!

My thanks to Bill for help with this post…to view more of his works please visit: billguild.com