Photography Has No Hips: The Why of the Blog

A bio of sorts -

I packed the trophies gently (not) into a dumpster and retired at fifty in order to spend a year in the wilderness - a year of solitude. It was a goal I set for myself when I was sixteen. I figured that age would nicely separate the first half of my existence from the second. An intermission of sorts.

Life is as diverse as I ever imagined. Am more interested in the connections between things than the things themselves, although some things are pretty nice in their own right. Becoming a child again is trickier than I thought. Living in the country - flyover country, happily, among singing birds and happy crickets with Lovely Rita, two dogs, and a wraparound porch. Quadraphonic peace.

For music, I like the sounds of a puppy's tail wagging, wind through the trees, and a beautiful woman's sigh.

Here's a random question: What the heck was all that back there?

DISCLAIMERS

(Eleven so far, and we're still just now backing out of the driveway. Had seven before I even got the garage door open.)

I have been lovingly advised by helpful friends, wishing only the best for me, I'm sure, that when lecturing around the country, perhaps I should preface my remarks with a few disclaimers, "you know, so as not to step on any toes."
It started simply enough with an offer to buy me a drink, a gentle hand on my shoulder, and "just a couple of tiny little suggestions, mind you."
As time went on, the suggestion list grew. Finally, I had to skip the lecture altogether just to leave time for questions and answers.
Fortunately, blogs have no concept of time, and I can stick these new disclaimers off to the side. I'll probably add more as situations and your helpful and loving suggestions warrant.

1. There are many reasons for snapping pix, or taking pictures, or making photographs, or creating images, or however you wish to phrase it. My goal here is not to denigrate any of those fine functions, or all the others, but rather to guide those who have finally come to The Brick Wall, and help them through it. (Those aren't bricks, by the way.)

2. I will not condemn the amateur. In this blog I will use the word "amateur" (from the French, to love) to refer to those who are photographers for the love of it instead of coming at it with other motivations such as commercial interests. To refer to those lacking skill as amateurs would put us all in that category.

3. My opinions are not necessarily those of any organizations or sponsors I've been associated with in the past or present.

4. My mother did not teach me any of this stuff.

5. This blog should never be thought of as a substitute for the instruction manual for a piece of equipment.

6. This is not a primer for beginning photographers. I have no intention whatsoever of ever discussing equipment except in an incidental way.

7. People who have failed to read their manuals should not be referred to as amateurs. They shall be called ignorant. Ignorance can be remedied. Stupid can't.

8. Ignorance is not an insult. It is merely a description of a temporary, and relative condition, the duration of which being determined by the energy and ambition of those afflicted. And we all are.

9. This blog will not allow name-calling or hurled insults. That's not why I will never call anyone stupid, though. I avoid it for the same reason I don't try to teach pigs to sing or a slab of granite to do the backstroke.

10. Picture vs. photograph vs. image vs. pic.
Call them whatever you like. When I use the term picture, "some circles" think it's demeaning. I think "some circles" are too full of self-importance and become self-aggrandizing. I know of photographers and painters alike who referred to their works, whether photographs or paintings, as "pictures." Some of these pictures are now worth millions.

11. This will not be the place to help people love photography. That should be a given. For me, that will be my point of departure. On the contrary, I intend to take you to the point that I took it to - a frightening place, a level conducive to primal shudders and wide-eyed fear, a level so deep that you will never be able to come back out the same way you went in, a new world, a new reality, a world where you will be scared as hell.

Friday, November 21, 2008

The Why of the Blog

I'm saying photography has no hips to make my first point about photography - people try to make it into something it is not. Not such a bad error, except that it leads people away from photography's vast and virtually untapped potential.

Photography has no hips, but it does have something that lies outside of normal human awareness. It people were aware, it would dominate the conversations among photographers. It would be the focus of photography books, classes, seminars, workshops, and conventions. It would rise in front of every aspiring photographer as a beacon, a guiding light, a goal.

For some - those of you who've achieved all the normal goals and now wonder, as Peggy Lee used to wonder, "Is that all there is?" - let me warn you (yes, warn you) that there is indeed more. And you may be sorry you asked.

If this interests you, follow my blog. Call your friends. They may remember me. I am about to start revealing some of the secrets that I took with me to the wilderness. I will also start sharing some of the lessons I learned during my year of solitude.

Hello, I'm ba-aaaack. Bwuuuh-huh-huh-huh.

Question: Will there be photographs in this blog, or just a bunch of words?

Answer: Yes, there will be photographs. I will tell you now that this blog will be more about the photographer than the photograph. I have always placed the photographer above the photograph. Whenever photographers are told how to take better pictures (which is all the time) they invariably become, to some degree, derivative. When my priority is on the photographer instead of the photograph, the work become more original. Original always trumps derivative. Thinking of Elvis impersonators should drive this point home.
Also, there's the not-so-little matter of blindfolds. I think it would be a good idea to remove them before pictures can be seen. By that, I mean comprehended. There's a huge difference between looking and understanding. So, first things first. I think the sequence I have lined out will be the best order of business.

Question: Will you be any nicer than you used to be? Just a little? Please?

Answer: Hey, I'm already as sweet as a speckled pup.

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Fred Hinegardner

A bio of sorts -

DISCLAIMERS

CAUTIONS, PRECAUTIONS, & WARNINGS

Friday, November 21, 2008

The Why of the Blog

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