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Disappointing my dad

November 26, 2020 in journal

My dad is very good at giving unsolicited and brutal feedback. He's got a good eye for negative stuff and is able to find it in almost anything.

"I'm disappointed, I was expecting more"

Those were his words after watching my recent video from Crater Lake. And even though I will never tell him this, I have to agree with him this time: it wasn't my best work by any means.

On one hand, this was due to the conditions: a boring, sunny and clear day. Timing is everything in photography. No matter how many masters of photography you throw at it, if the conditions aren't right, it's not going to work.

On the other hand, it's always possible to create good images. We just need to find what is that shines under the conditions we've got. I did try with the full moon, with some long exposures, with silhouettes. They are not the kind of images one might imagine from a place like Crater Lake, and that might crush other people's expectations.

I've said this dozens of times on this blog and my YouTube channel, but it's worth repeating: you are one click away from your best image ever. What that image is going to be of, you don't know. Stay open and flexible when you visit a location. Have a few images in mind, but if they don't work, be willing to move on and find something else. In many cases, that will be much better than your original idea. It will be, at least, different and original.

Even if that disappoints others.

Tags: photography, motivation, crater lake, oregon, conditions, weather
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