Re: [Leica] Re: Definition of a Professional

[Byron Rakitzis <byron@rakitzis.com>]

>Are there many other means of expression or hobbies that have that type
>of icon fantasy ? Cannot think of any. In the sports field, the stop
>watch will trace the difference between good and not as good. Here it
>is all down to subjectivity.

I am not sure I get your point -- in most artistic endeavors there has
to be an element of subjectivity: otherwise the activity MAY be reduced
to sport.

For example, you can specify a flawless performance of a piano concerto
(pitch levels, durations and so on), but your specification will be
neither here nor there when it comes to finding out if the performance
actually moves anybody. That is purely a subjective judgement.

Anyway, here's my take on photography in particular:

Photography is a kind of "stochastic" art form: a good photographer is
distinguished by a large body of successful photographs. Any one single
photograph could have been taken by someone else (possibly), but the
consistency and breadth and depth is the mark of an artist.

So what confuses people is that a single good photograph may *not
necessarily* represent a good photographer.

But if you look at this more closely, it's actually not that different
from other kinds of art, it's just expressed in an extreme form: anybody
can get lucky and make a single good brushstroke, or play a single good
note, but no one is going to "get lucky" and produce a masterpiece like
Michaelangelo's David. So I think you simply need to extend the basis
of comparison from "one photograph" to "many photographs".

I guess this is a truism, and bear with me because I'm not trying to
lecture anyone (i.e., humor me, it's late at night and it's fun writing
in to the LUG) but what I'm trying to say is that success in any art
form, be it photography or anything else, comes from practice, practice,
practice. And the difference between someone who has made that (huge)
investment of time and someone who just dabbles is usually quite apparent.

Byron.