Search This Blog

Sunday, April 2, 2017

13 Benefits of Photography for Anyone

1.  Historical uses.  Many photos may have several of the benefits combined.  Historical photos will show changes in many areas - fashion, structures, transportation, and on and on.  The top photo is of my great great grand uncle, and the bottom photo is my great grandmother and is a tintype photo.



2.  When looking at your photos, you may see something you hadn't seen when you shot the actual photo.  I've been surprised many times by this.  For example, I did see and shoot this strange cloud formation, but  can also see the street sign so I know where I was, and also there is a readable for lease sign with a phone number, in case I or someone eslse might be interested in that.



3.  It may help you focus more (pun intended) on things that are important to you, such as family, friends, pets, the environment, etc.  The first one is my younger brother, and the other was my German Shepherd, Wolf (from many years ago).




4.  It will help you find more beauty in life, which in turn can help you become less stressed, leading to better health and enjoyment.  This photo is from along the Ballona Creek Bike Path.



5.  It makes memories more vivid.  Looking at past photos can bring you back to that time - hopefully, a good time in your life, perhaps lifting your mood.  The first photo is of my father, mother, older brother, and me.   The second one is of me, my father, and older brother at Jones Beach, NY.  Those take me back a long long time ago.




6.  If the photos are of people, you can see how fashions have changed over time.  If of specific locations, you can see the changes there, too.  From the '60s - miniskirts and bell bottoms.



7.  This is more of a benefit for others, but you can help them to experience things that they may have missed and that they find interesting.  For example, the recent ciclavia in LA or perhaps Halloween in West Hollywood, or performers at Venice Beach, CA.  Photos from Halloween Carnaval in West Hollywood.





8.  It may be good exercise by getting you to explore new places and also to move around to get the best angles.  The below photos were shot at the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook - I went there for the first time to test a new lens.  It was definitely good exercise, even more so because I rode my bicycle to the location.  The bottom photo looks like the stairway to heaven!  I took the trail to the top - a little longer, but not quite so steep.




9.  You may get to meet new people and hopefully make new friends.




10. When you are shooting a particular subject, it can clear your mind of everything else when you are really concentrating on getting the best image.  Lena, in the photo below, always made it easy to get the best image.


11.  You may see details that you normally wouldn't have seen as you are looking for something to shoot.  Well, Halloween in West Hollywood there are always things to shoot, lots of details, too.  I definitely would not have normally seen a scene like this, LOL.



12.  To tell or illustrate a story or event.  This is especially true for weddings.


13.  Show humor - I think these two photos and the change of expression shot at Halloween in West Hollywood are pretty funny.




Pretty much wherever I go I carry a camera with me.  You never know what you may see when you are out and about, whether it's a strange cloud formation, a beautiful scene, a famous person, a beautiful young lady, or the odd and unusual.  Below is a current photo of my first camera, which I got as a present at age 7 (probably still works) and used until I was around 22, when I got my first semi-professional camera, and a couple of years later bought a Nikon while in the Air Force.


Hope you've enjoyed this post.  The photos go from probably the late 1800s to the present.

No comments:

Post a Comment