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Saturday, March 22, 2014

Photography and Copying (Sort of)

I said "sort of" because what I'm talking about is not copying someone else's actual photo, but copying an idea, pose, lighting, etc.  For example, if you or I see a photo in a magazine that we love, for our session we might start by trying to duplicate it.  Of course, we then go on to do variations on that theme, some of which may well be even better.  Certainly different.  Bringing either past photos of yourself that you really liked, or cut outs from a magazine can get your great results in a photo session.  Not to mention it's fun to see what we can accomplish with that as a starting point.

Lest you think it's wrong to copy this way, keep in mind that since the first photo was taken in 1838, over 3.5 trillion photos are estimated to have been taken.  And millions are being added every day.  So no matter what or how something is photographed, chances are pretty good someone else has already done it; therefore, you are almost certainly, and perhaps unknowingly, copying someone somewhere.

Although the pose, lighting, composition, etc., may be the same, your personality is unique - as long as the photographer captures that, your photograph will be unique.  That being said, you still wouldn't want a photographer who captures everyone the same exact way.  This is less likely to happen if your photos are shot on location (your home, a favorite park or hiking trail, etc.).

Hope this answers some questions you may have.  Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!

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