Sometimes you just know.

Shawn Dougherty · Apr 27, 2015

I make numerous exposures, far more than get printed, even proofed. I believe that's a good thing and a part of my editing process. I'm always excited under the dark cloth and usually quite hopeful when developing film. Yet as far as whether or not a negative is going to end up being a keeper, a print that I'm truly happy with, most of the time it's a bit of a crap shoot.

However, sometimes you just know. You know it on the ground glass, you know it the moment you pull the negative from the fixer and you know it all over again on the first sheet of paper.

These are the exceptions, not the rule... for me. It sure is exciting, though. I've got one in the wash right now, in negative form. Now I find myself desperately trying to figure out the next time I can squeeze in a printing session.

I imagine I'm not alone here... :munch:

Sirius Glass · Apr 27, 2015

Yes sometimes I know. In fact most of the time.

Ken Nadvornick · Apr 27, 2015

It can be a humbling experience when all of the known variables, as well as all of the unknown ones, spontaneously fall in the right direction, in any area of sweat and expertise, not just photographs.

You thought you knew everything and had accounted for it all. Ultimately that confidence may have taken long hard painful years to achieve. But then it turned out that the crucial things were the things that you didn't even know existed, that aligned correctly all by themselves, without you realizing it beforehand, that made the difference.

And the humility comes from the realization that the achievement, while certainly noteworthy and enjoyable, does not entirely belong to you.

The key is to never forget that you do not know everything, and thus you will continue to look when others have long since confidently ceased...

Ken

bdial · Apr 27, 2015

Those are the ones that make it all worthwhile.

Shawn Dougherty · Apr 27, 2015

That's right, Ken. I'm not sure what percentage luck plays but it is significant. Being prepared for it is the best we can do.

They sure are, bdial.

Sirius Glass · Apr 27, 2015

The best photographs are the undeveloped photographs and lost rolls of film. Those are always perfect.

As far as humility, sometimes when I am being humble I can barely stand the stuff that comes out of my mouth. At those times all I want to do is to use mouthwash or rinse my mouth with hydrogen peroxide!

blansky · Apr 27, 2015

As we improve, the keepers percentage are far higher,but often this just leads us to raise our standard as well.

What we once thought was a good keeper can evolve to only being satisfied by great keepers.

And then sometimes magic happens, and then we are only satisfied with magic.

We are hardly ever truly satisfied.

removed account4 · Apr 27, 2015

Shawn Dougherty said:
I make numerous exposures, far more than get printed, even proofed. I believe that's a good thing and a part of my editing process. I'm always excited under the dark cloth and usually quite hopeful when developing film. Yet as far as whether or not a negative is going to end up being a keeper, a print that I'm truly happy with, most of the time it's a bit of a crap shoot.

However, sometimes you just know. You know it on the ground glass, you know it the moment you pull the negative from the fixer and you know it all over again on the first sheet of paper.

These are the exceptions, not the rule... for me. It sure is exciting, though. I've got one in the wash right now, in negative form. Now I find myself desperately trying to figure out the next time I can squeeze in a printing session.

I imagine I'm not alone here... :munch:

hi shawn

i have always been always overly optimistic.
from time to time thinking i got something perfect
never as i imagined it was
the stars NOT perfectly aligned, no harmonic conversion
and once in a while, great images never reveal themselves to me until years later ...

distance i have found to be my friend, and closeness not an ally

i think garry winogrand beleived this too, and would hold film in latent image
form for weeks, or months befroe he turned them into negatives. from what i remember
there were 10,000 rolls of film to be processed upon his death.

Shawn Dougherty · Apr 27, 2015

jnanian said:
hi shawn

i have always been always overly optimistic.
from time to time thinking i got something perfect
never as i imagined it was
the stars NOT perfectly aligned, no harmonic conversion
and once in a while, great images never reveal themselves to me until years later ...

distance i have found to be my friend, and closeness not an ally

i think garry winogrand beleived this too, and would hold film in latent image
form for weeks, or months befroe he turned them into negatives. from what i remember
there were 10,000 rolls of film to be processed upon his death.

What you're saying is much more the norm for me than the "sometimes you just know" photographs. I often need a great deal of distance / time between me and photograph to see it for what it can be, free of expectation. But that serves to make the rare, sure thing, even more exciting.

Shawn Dougherty · Apr 27, 2015

APUGuser19 said:
As my Dad says on the golf course: "I'd rather be lucky than good".

I think the latter requires the former.

mike c · Apr 27, 2015

Shawn Dougherty said:
I make numerous exposures, far more than get printed, even proofed. I believe that's a good thing and a part of my editing process. I'm always excited under the dark cloth and usually quite hopeful when developing film. Yet as far as whether or not a negative is going to end up being a keeper, a print that I'm truly happy with, most of the time it's a bit of a crap shoot.

However, sometimes you just know. You know it on the ground glass, you know it the moment you pull the negative from the fixer and you know it all over again on the first sheet of paper.

These are the exceptions, not the rule... for me. It sure is exciting, though. I've got one in the wash right now, in negative form. Now I find myself desperately trying to figure out the next time I can squeeze in a printing session.

I imagine I'm not alone here... :munch:

When that happens to me (every other even numbered Tuesday after a full moon in a leap year) I buy a lotto ticket. Have not hit the big lotto, but had a great time making some prints.

MartinCrabtree · Apr 28, 2015

APUGuser19 said:
As my Dad says on the golf course: "I'd rather be lucky than good".

I was a crew chief/engine builder for a ProStock motorcycle team in the early '90s. When someone said that I'd counter with "the better prepared you are,the luckier you get." And if we showed up there were two things the competition could hope for,1-second place,2-we broke. The former happened far more often than the latter. We spent many hundreds of hours preparing. Which made us very lucky.

Mainecoonmaniac · Apr 28, 2015

Is this it?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_(psychology)

blansky · Apr 28, 2015

Also called these days as " being in the zone".

Shawn Dougherty · Apr 28, 2015

blansky said:
As we improve, the keepers percentage are far higher,but often this just leads us to raise our standard as well.

What we once thought was a good keeper can evolve to only being satisfied by great keepers.

And then sometimes magic happens, and then we are only satisfied with magic.

We are hardly ever truly satisfied.

This certainly rings true for me. Subtle, quiet magic is my thing, I find it often but rarely portray it to my satisfaction.

Bill Burk · Apr 28, 2015

blansky said:
And then sometimes magic happens, and then we are only satisfied with magic.

It happens with words too.

Ian Grant · Apr 29, 2015

Most of my best images were realised at the point of shooting, by that I mean I knew at the time before processing.

Ian

Sometimes you just know.

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