Thursday, December 3, 2009

Purists Beware

This is a straight repost from Chase Jarvis' blog. One that I should really read more often! I love love love this post. Thanks to Greg for showing this to me in response to my Symbiosis post! I don't see how anyone could argue that Photoshop is "cheating". Idiots.



I just recently overheard a self-described "purist" photgrapher ranting on about how we're all cheaters and that the photographic masters before us lacked our current luxury--even desire--to "customize" (read: manipulate/photoshop) images. It was "...all about the the composition, a beautiful subject, and a properly exposed picture".

I call horse-pucky.

Above: Avedon's instructions to his printer.
FYI Richard Avedon is one of my heroes... Along with Steven Meisel... I mean how could they NOT be my heroes???

5 comments:

  1. Hi Charles!

    At last, someone who doesn't make me feel guilty that I photoshop! I do feel sometimes that I have to defend myself from my friends who tend to espouse the purists photographer's mantra.

    I just started following your blog, and so far, i've learned a lot more here in the past 2 hrs than I have watching youtube videos. :-) Thanks and keep it up!

    Veronica

    ReplyDelete
  2. Welcome Veronica! :) Glad to be of service. If there are any specific questions you have regarding anything I do, feel free to ask. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I completely agree with you Charles.
    I started to develope my own films at home and with that I can change a lot of stuff, I can push the ISO from 100 to 800, can use a developer to have more contrast, etc... So the "purists" are a little bit strange when they say, I click and here it is.
    thanks a lot for your good and remarkable work!!! I hope some day I would do something as good as your work!

    Joao

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks Joao! I agree with you! :) I'm starting to think purists are really just people who don't know a whole lot about the photography or the history of photography and refuse to see the truth...

    and the truth is that they're wrong ;) LOL!

    ReplyDelete