Article by- Chinar Tekchandani & Apurv Jadhav
Your most important gear is your eye, heart and soul.
– Marius Vieth
A fine art photograph conveys more than just the image. It conveys an idea or a message that the photographer may have. To define it is more challenging than it appears to be. It may or may not be understood by the viewer, hence it always comes with a written statement.
The most important aspect of fine art photography is- aesthetics. It needs to be appealing to the viewer’s eye, so much that the viewer feels the need to understand it further. A fine art image circles around its message or idea. There are no fixed components that can be used in these images. Objects, people, pets, nature, etc can be the subjects. What separates fine art photography from the other genres is that it is about the artist’s perception. It is not what the camera sees. It is what the artist sees and wants to convey.
The purpose behind the photograph is as important as the image itself. One should be well aware of their camera settings in order to make their vision a reality. The primary focus should be on the photographer’s feelings. As a viewer, one should try to see a fine art photo in relation to the written statement and put themselves in the artist’s shoes.
Fine art photography is a skill that doesn’t come easily to people. It takes time and effort to develop because of its deep relation with the photographer. It’s usually passion for a certain idea that helps people move forward in this genre. Apart from that, the imagination of an artist also plays a major role to make his images worthy of showcasing.
Fine art photographs usually need to be planned. The artist should have an idea and an image in their mind before they go forward to create it. The best way to do this, is to write the idea down. The idea can be messy or abstract, it can be easy or complicated to understand, however, when one writes it down, it gives them a way to organise the message and move ahead.
That being done, the next step would be to choose your subjects. With fine art photography, the sky is the limit when it comes to selecting subjects. They can be anything and everything. Once that is done, an aesthete needs to be set. And you’re ready to start clicking.
The expression doesn’t come easily, however with this genre of photography, when it’s mastered, it becomes a powerful tool of conveying messages in the most elegant way.
We hope this helps you and you can begin fine art photography now with ease. We wish you all the best for all your endeavors!
