So why do we do it?

Strangways

Strangways

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Gordon
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Okay, I know a lot of you are professionals, but I bet even your work overlaps with pleasure and you take photographs just for yourself.

So what are the reasons the rest of us do it? I would be interested to get more of an understanding.

This is what I think, but have you got other ideas/

1. To record events such as births, weddings, holidays etc..
2. To try and capture the beauty in that magical moment, which gave us a feeling we can’t understand. Like the rising and setting sun.
3. To capture the beauty of nature in landscapes and seascape.
4. To make art by photographing still life or patterns that we see around us.

Why do we take pictures of sport? Is it just because we like that sport? Do we want a record of where we have been and what we have seen (and do we ever look back at them all?)? Or do we just want a perfect picture no matter what it is.

Why do we do it?
 
I spent many years competing in middle and long distance racing, then a bad back injury meant I could not compete any longer, so I decided to try photographing people who could. I keeps me close to a sport I love.
 
Simple - because I enjoy doing it :)
 
I've always enjoyed all things artistic.

I've tried my hand at making music, animations, digital art, painting with acrylics/watercolour/oils, drawing, drawing cartoons, making movies, making machinima (movies made within video games), and photography.

Originally I wanted a camera quick enough to take photos of me and my mates mountain biking.
Borrowed my dad's compact, and that was it.

I'm quite a technical guy, and I just love how something so artistic is combined with something not only technical but scientific, too.
I find the process of photography fascinating and the end result thrilling.

I do photography for all of those 4 reasons you said above, and many, god, many more.
 
I started photography when i was a wildlife illustrator, to get photos of birds i wanted to paint. Got bored of painting and liked photography and from then on it was the thing I did - now I have a dream job as head of photography at a publishers and get to combine my first loves of togging and fishing :)
 
The last two really, and maybe for the added benefit of money occasionally (especially now, i'm skint... :lol:).
 
i love pictures - and wanted to create things - but found i didn't have the inclination to painting or drawing. photography fills that gap of being 'creative' for a 'non-creative' person!!!!
 
I adore my dogs, and thats the main reason i take pictures to capture them and have forever memories, this was never as important to me as it is now when i lost my best friend, this month 2 years ago, i get to see his face everyday thanks to my first camera S9600 which captured the shot thats now on my wall and his face will never fade even as my memory ages. I also share the pictures with friends who are as dog mad as me, i suppose its like a dog photo diary i keep.
 
Because I can't draw!

It was the only subject I seriously failed at school and yet I knew what I liked artistically (or perhaps I just got fed up of sketching apples!) I do have a creative streak a mile wide but I'm also very technically minded. I've rebuilt cars and bikes and I've always favoured very technical jobs. I've pretty much always had a camera to hand too and when digital came along I happened to be working for Olympus at the time.

So I bit and bit hard. Then I got frustrated with the technical level of the bridge camera I had and bought my first DSLR then it began to get serious.....I did an OU course to make sure I was up to speed and started with studio lighting, then portraits, then wedding courses, then more advanced training with pros.....

One day I'll get there too.:)

For me it's being able to make images. To take a subject, any subject and get the most out of it that I can. And not to forget those special family moments (and the pets too) :)
 
I used to go fishing with my son, I enjoyed the time we spent together, yet even though I wasnt good at it, it brought me near to nature and gave me an excuse to sit quietly and watch nature all around me, a reason just to be there.
Since my son passed away from cancer 2 years ago, I cant bring myself to go fishing any more, but to go out into a country area with a camera, to take pictures of whatever I see, gives me the same excuse to be there. When I do get a good picture of a bird or whatever, its nice to get the approval of people I show it to.
Apart from that, I cant see a useful purpose for photography, other than, I enjoy it.
Trev
 
I agree with AliB, cant draw for love nor money, and would give my right arm to. I am not a very good photographer at all, so not even creative, but it really opens your eyes, I have discovered clouds, and trees, and have been called "sad" when you get excited to see the way the light falls:) it just opens your eyes to things and makes you slow down and look at things differently. In this rush around envrionment, its nice to take 5.
 
With Photography I've found something that I love doing and my visual disability doesn't get in the way of my passion for photography :)!!! I've always loved animals, with photography, I'm able to combine the two. I also enjoy landscape photography and macro, I enjoy photographing landscapes different times of the year (spring is my favourite time of year for landscape photography), I love photographing the bluebells at Ashridge Woods (when I went there this year, it was like a sea of bluebells) especially when the sun is setting behind the trees :). I enjoy macro because it gives me a reason to try to be creative with my camera, without a camera, I'm not a very creative person (I'm not very good at drawing or making things :lol:). I think photography is very rewarding, when you finally get a photo that you're happy with, its a great feeling!!

Natasha
 
Damned if I know, been doing it for 37 years and still don't know why but I will continue to I find out, reckon my Kids are going to be left a photo album and half to look through on my wake :D
 
what everyone else said :lol: it's an outlet for my creativity, and it comes in very handy in my other big hobbies (model horses and jewellery making) :D i couldn't put my finger on exactly why i love it, but i suspect i always will :lol:
 
I love the arts and as more and more become less available to me because of my body's restrictions, photography didn't. I've tried most arts and have been taking photographs since I was 8 years old. Only went digital about 3 years ago, which made it even more appealing (to see my images is free!).

My memory is poor, so I like to look at pictures to remember things.

Other than that it's relaxing and something that I really, really enjoy.
 
I shoot BMX because it has been my passion since i was 14, i'm now 35 and getting to the point where the injuries are not worth the risk, work and homelife get affected when you are off your feet. So taking photo's of the thing i love the most, keeps me within the scene, so to speak. I still use my bike to get to and from places with my mates.
 
foodpoison said:
I'm quite a technical guy, and I just love how something so artistic is combined with something not only technical but scientific, too.
I find the process of photography fascinating and the end result thrilling.
Click to expand...

That describes me too.

When I started photography (when I was about ten) I was much more interested in the technical aspects and most of my pictures were crap!

Now the artistic side is of more interest to me but I am still fascinated when I open up something like a Compur shutter and see the skill involved in designing and manufacturing it before the days of computers with CAD and 3D modeling.

Simmotino said:
To pull chicks......
Click to expand...

And that...... it doesn't work though!



Steve.
 
I enjoy it as it gets me out of the house visiting new places and meeting new people.
 
It is very interesting to see that we all enjoy photography for many different reasons and some of the posts are very moving.

I'm sure we all have our favourite photos that we have either printed or we look at from time to time, but I wonder how many pictures we have stored away in a draw or a hard drive that never get viewed again. Maybe there are some treasures that we have forgotten but we never find the time to review because we are so busy enjoying taking new ones.

My interest started when I was about 10 and my dad bought me a Kodak Brownie 127. I don't expect many of you remember those. We had a darkroom at school so I spent a lot of time in there developing and printing (all in B&W). I took pictures of just about everything I saw because the school paid for the printing.

I'm really not sure why I have continued my interest, but I am still trying to get that elusive perfect picture!

Gordon
 
jerry12953 said:
Yeah right, a guy with a load of gear round his neck and a huge rucsac as well is one sexy beast.....
Click to expand...

It may not work out in the field, but when I was about 14 we had lots of fun in the darkroom at school!
 
I do it because it's one of the only things that I can do where afterwards I can stand back and say "I made that"

Spend all day sitting at a computer writting code and never seeing a result from it
 
It has surprised me just how much the bug has bitten.

I sat at home one day, wandering round the internet, and realised how unproductive I was being, and decided I needed a hobby to get me out of the house.

I couldn't work out what I would find interesting, but having gone to every Mildenhall airshow up until they finished in 2001, I decided that I would look into going to a couple of airshows. I then decided that I would like a camera to take a few pics, and my research very quickly told me that a compact was not up to the task. Further research then led to me being bitten by the bug, and I then began to read a lot, until such time that I bought my first DSLR (A Canon 400D kit with 18-55mm and 50-200mm) in Jan 2008.

I now go to my chosen airbases (Usually Lakenheath and Mildenhall) with a 40D and 100-400mm, laptop, scanner radios and I am never happier than when I am there, it is my escapism, I have made some good friends there, and last friday, had my first go at night shots, and found it to be quite a challenge (for my particular level of knowledge), I make many mistakes with my photography, but occasionally, I do get a picture I'm really happy with.

I have a long way to go,but I will get there.
 
i used to love art, like drawing or using oil pastels and that, but then I went off it as it was so time consuming. So photography is kind of like my new 'arty hobby'
And I like recording images of places or people (like in concerts) and especially dogs! I was happy with my point&shoot until i got my puppy and wanted something better to get nicer images of my dog.
I also love using photoshop now and playing around with different effects, and to think just months ago I was so intimidated by it and its array of tools!
 
Since I was a kid I've had PnS film cameras. I love to travel and I like to take pictures of the places I go and things that I see. A few years ago I bought a digital PnS (Canon Powershot A620) and progressed to a DSLR after I tried a friends 350D a couple of years ago.
 
In my case, I just enjoy taking photos, pure and simple, even though I can actually draw and paint if it needs be (but I'm more of a cartoonist anyway).
But having said all that, photography is very strongly linked to my other huge passion - meteorology. The amount of weather-related photos I have on me is just ridiculous. :D
 
hello- first post here

I enjoy the way this science melds with art, more now that I have the time and money to do what I have always aspired to. I was first exposed to photography when I got a job in a lab during college, lucky for me I didn't get the job at the cannery. took me twenty years to get back into this beyond snapshots.
Although gear isn't cheap, once you have it, it doesn't cost a cent to go out looking for shots. people always appreciate a good shot of themselves or their kids, I like having good quality records of my favorite places, and it is good exercise out walking around looking for another image.
 
'I want only to capture a minute part of reality' and all that isn't it?
 
Really nice thread to read. For me it's a bit of everything.

Capturing moments in time. Documenting how an environment changes, hopefully leaving something for future generations to remember how the northeast looked once.

Being able to give friends and family a photo of themselves or their loved ones that they can cherish. (and like, so many people I know hate having their photo taken)

Creating 'art' for people.

Making an image that I couldn't paint.

But also, gathering images that may not be a great photo but inspire me to paint. Things like the way the sun hits the waves or dappled light through trees. I can't do things justice with photos sometimes, but i like to interpret them with paint. (they might be poop, but I enjoy the process of doing it)

Oh, and also because it is a great medium to learn things through. All the technical aspects, the historic side, the geography, the natural history. I really like the monthly competition themes because it makes you think .
 
I cannot draw and I cannot paint but I seem to be able to take pictures that people like. I am also a complete computer nerd and digital photography allows me to be a computer nerd without it looking too nerdy. I am also using my new found skills within my job which is quite interesting.
 
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