Photography is done many ways by many different people and it's all about preference. My preference is apparently as old school as my love for photography. Yea, it's a digital world, but I still use my film background as my foundation.
When I switched to a digital SLR about 7 years ago, I brought my film photographer's mentality with me. Having shot with a film SLR for a long time, my goal was always to make sure I knew my camera well enough to set it up right and capture a realistic image. I think of my camera as an extension of my eye. It's a way to tell people a story of what I saw in a way words can't come close to describing.
I look at the post side of photography just like I looked at a darkroom or sending my film to a processor. I expected to come out with only as good of an image as I had taken the time and knowledge to set up. Yea, some times it was trial and error, but that was prime-time learning. I was so proud, in classes or on my own, to come out with an image that was just as I had envisioned it when I took it. I brought that with me as I transitioned from film into digital, and I still shoot and edit that way today. My post work involves only very simple editing in very simple programs. Most of my work is on simple contrast. I may turn an image black and white or soften focus at times, but that is about it. I just really find it important to do as little editing as possible. When I'm done, I still have the same basic photo I exported from my camera card. The only way to do this is to really know my camera and practice a lot.
What makes that an old school point of view?
Well, now that DSLRs are as cheap as a ham sandwich, everyone has one. The majority of these folks just get the camera, put it in auto, and call them self a photographer. They don't even read the manual for the camera much less take a class. It takes training and tons of experience to really be good at photography. Many of these people just use their SLR as a point-and-shoot camera, missing out on a ton of their new camera's ability.
Then many of these new photographers love to use programs like photoshop and others to work on their photos. They will typically use lots of adjustments and effects on their photos and make them look totally different that they did in the camera. Now, if they do it for a neat effect, that's one thing, but many of these folks do it to correct a problem with the look of the shot from the camera. Again, it's all preference, but I see my camera as a simple extension of what I see with my eye.
In my opinion, folks who don't take the time to learn their DSLR inside and out would be better served to buy a high megapixel point and shoot for $300 or $400.
Well put
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