Photographyblog, Tom Mackie , Back to Basic Photography

I love technology. The Internet has changed the way we do business and communicate with each other. As a photographer, getting feedback about my work before the Internet was rare. This was usually limited to talks at tradeshows or camera clubs. But talking face-to-face, people are less likely to give you honest, constructive comments.

It’s interesting to read some of the comments from other photographers regarding work published in my books and on the Internet. One person said referring to one of my books,“ I could not find any secrets from this book. Since digital is now the new photography this book is totally film.” Unfortunately he was missing the point. It doesn’t matter if you are using film or digital, the same principles apply.

Just look at any books branded as ‘digital’ and for the most part the content is exactly the same as pre-digital how-to photography books with the possible inclusion of a few technical descriptions on how to use features such as auto white balance. The digital camera as with any camera, is only a tool. It is not responsible to producing great images, the photographer is. As though there is a secret formula to follow a step-by-step procedure to create powerful images.

Ok, in a way there is, but I’m sorry to tell you, there are no secrets. Man did not land on the moon, there was a conspiracy to assassinate Kennedy and there were no weapons of mass destruction. It’s been there in front of us all along in countless books and magazines on photography. They are the basic principles of creating powerful images beginning with lighting, more specifically the correct lighting for the subject whether it’s a landscape, close-up detail of nature, or a building.

Secondly, a strong composition in combination with the right kind of light and you’re heading in the right direction. And finally, timing. Capturing the ‘decisive moment’ as Henri Cartier Bresson coined the phrase can make or break an image. Whether it is tripping the shutter at the precise moment when capturing a moving element or waiting until the light falls onto the scene in the correct place, timing plays a vital part of creating powerful images. This is especially true when all three elements lighting, composition, and timing coincide to create a truly memorable image.

If you study any image that captivates you, ask yourself what makes it a powerful image? Chances are it will be a combination of lighting and an effective composition. Using the Rule of Thirds, leading lines, and of course, I like breaking the rules when necessary to create an image with impact.

When is it a good time to break the rules? For example, putting the subject in the centre of the frame instead of on the third. I generally look for a conceptual theme such as in the image of the heart-shaped sunflower. As it’s the only flower in the field that is open making it special, setting it apart from the rest, so centre position calls more attention to it. Some conceptual words could be individual, unique, special, love, and exclusive. It would not have been as effective if it were placed on the third. By the way, other than only 2 strategically placed petals, it is a straight image.

Another person commented, “I can’t even hope to create pictures like Tom’s because I am only using 35mm…he’s using medium and large format cameras.” The size of the format doesn’t matter; it’s what you do with it that makes the difference. It’s even possible to make great pictures with a camera phone. I was using the larger formats at the time because of client requirements and I still use large format, though more selectively, mainly because I enjoy using a view camera.

Now with the advancement of technology we have a level playing field. The quality and capability that DSLR’s now provide is astonishing. It has opened up creative possibilities in my photography. I can now achieve images that before I wouldn’t have even bothered to get the camera out of the bag.

Recently, I was photographing a well-known coastal landscape, that in the years prior to digital, there would be several photographers using medium or large format cameras mounted on tripods. Yes, of course, there would be lots of tourist’s handholding their compacts or 35mm cameras, but now the tables have turned. A majority of the photographers had tripod mounted DSLR’s and these tended to be medium or high end DSLR’s. There was only one person shooting medium format film.

For the most part, we are all using the same cameras now so we should all be creating great images, right? Remember, it’s not the camera that makes the pictures; it’s the person behind it. Starting with a good understanding of the basics of photography is much more important than buying the latest gear on the market. Putting these principles into practice on a regular basis will then hopefully become second nature.

Oh, there is one secret that I learned when I was starting out. Knowing when not to make a picture.

Biography

http://www.tommackie.com/

Tom Mackie has been a photographer all his working life. His degree in commercial photography took him first of all to Los Angeles, where he spent five years as an industrial and architectural photographer. It was during this period that he travelled widely in the Western States, discovering in himself a previously unknown fervour for the beauty of those vast ‘cinemascope’ panoramas. After that, the confines of a Los Angeles commercial studio were never going to hold him. Tom married his art to this new-found passion and embarked on a ‘til death-do-us-part’ relationship with landscape photography.

Moving to the UK in 1985, he pursued a full-time career as a landscape photographer. Working with digital, panoramic and large format equipment, Tom’s understanding of light and bold use of colour became a hallmark that established his reputation.

"My aim from the first was to develop a clearly defined style of my own: by simplifying images down to their basic elements, I consciously attempt to give my compositions more power."

Calendar, book and magazine work followed from a wide network of clients. Architectural and travel commissions added to his repertoire and his role as one of the country’s leading landscape photographers was sealed by his inclusion in ‘The World’s Top Photographers: Landscape’, published by Rotovision.

His talents have also won accolades from The British Institute of Professional Photographers, the Ilford Awards and Business Calendar Awards.

Tom Mackie has had two books published by David & Charles: a best-selling ‘Photos With Impact’, ‘Tom Mackie’s Landscape Photography Secrets’ and his latest book ‘Digital SLR Experts: Landscape’ is a collaboration with four other top photographers.

He has written numerous articles for photography magazines and lectures to other professionals on the art of landscape photography. Tom regularly holds photographic workshops in the UK and abroad.