I was struck by the above thought when I saw a hawk in a tree at the Fullerton arboretum. As I was shooting, a young woman (in her late twenties) approached with a nice camera and lens. Quietly I pointed out the hawk. She looked up and took one shot. When I moved on, she started talking to me about how the light was wrong. She spoke with authority about how she knew how to read lighting conditions, how she didn't waste time taking bad shots. She insinuated that I could learn from listening to her, she was confident, but it came across as arrogance to me.
I don't know, perhaps I'm the arrogant one. I do know this, there was plenty of light.
You know, THAT'S funny Jerry... I've been "takin' pitchurs" since I was 10 yrs old and I would never presume to know it all. Heck, only 10% of anything I shoot is any good... But I'm delighted with my 10%!
ReplyDeleteMay the light wasn't good enough for her ability!
Forgive me if I ever come across as arrogant...It's tough to be confidently insecure. BTW, I love the irony in your post. It's hard to have an opinion without seeming judgmental isn't it?
Confidently insecure - what an interesting concept.
ReplyDeleteI keep only a small percentage of the things I shoot and when I see another photographer, I'm always looking to see what I can learn. It intrigued me that she only shot once. There could be all sort of explanations for this, but that she was compelled to lecture me caught me off guard. It was in the shade, but there was plenty of even light.
It is difficult to express an opinion without being judgmental, that's what an opinion is - a judgement. This was one of those odd moments when I walked away not really knowing what to think or how to react, but it's the odd moments that often stimulate the most interesting conversations.
I appreciate you Ty.