The absurdly brilliant need to be shared...

"Our pictures are our footprints. It’s the best way to tell people we were here."



I don't know if many of you have ever noticed the long list of links on the side of the page. They are all blogs or links to photographer sites I feel are significant...

...hence the heading "Significant Links".

Well, if you haven't been following any of them or checking them recently, they're quite brilliant sometimes.

Today there were a couple exceptional ones.

Top-shelf professional photographer Joe McNally: he's written a couple books now and has a National Geographic cover and everything... but today he deviated from his usual wit and posted this gem: >>HERE<<

The last section is exceptional. I mean extraordinary. Usually you see quotes from the great photographers like Robert Capa saying things like "if your photographs aren't good enough you're not close enough" and such like that, but Joe McNally struck a chord with his readers today. Here's the quote:

"Our pictures are our footprints. It’s the best way to tell people we were here."

That one's gonna stick around.

Secondly, PixSylated has a series of "Lessons I Didn't Learn in Photo School". Things that nobody tells anybody else but you just have to learn by doing... and making mistakes... and seeing what actually works.

"Ultimately your career as a photographer, amateur or professional, will be defined by the lives you touch through the images you make."

Yeah, its a little more touchy-feely than the McNally quote, but I kinda see how its true just for the little stuff as I, the Fledgling Photographer that I am, seek to emerge in the world of photojournalism.



I co-taught a class today on photography. It was quite an experience, for as relaxed as a thing that it was... few people, no expectations, no requirements...

But in teaching it, I learned that I still have so much to learn. I'm sitting here looking at thousands and thousands of photographs a week from the likes of a host of Joe McNally's, Burn Magazine, VEWD, MJR, a bunch of wedding photojournalist, The Frame, The Big Picture, and I have accounts with a few of the major wire services just to look at photos that pop up each morning on the wire.

In an attempt to train my mind to "see" photographs I consume myself with images ranging from everything to everything else.

And so this is what I've been doing for almost two full years now... but I learn more each day. I've been shooting for myself more these days. Taking advantage of the press access even when its not required.

Practice is invaluable.

I still dwell on that quote:

"Our pictures are our footprints. It’s the best way to tell people we were here."

Oh, and by the way, I'm going through some photos for my parents from their trip to Italy. My mum took the shot of me above. Good Facebook shot, right?

Well, she also took this:


Go mom.

What else these days? Baseball season. Gets a bit repetitive at times... but it is a terrific chance to practice nano-second decisive moments...


Stay tuned,
-Noah D.