Developing a Photographic Style

And being afraid to lie

February 12, 2021

How does someone "find" their photographic style? I've been trying to find mine for years and have only recently begun to realize what it might be. As much as I've tried to emulate other styles, even ones I love, I tend to lean towards a particular way of manipulating photos that satisfies my mind.

I think people tend to edit their photos in the direction that they view the world. They find the little things in a scene that excite them or speak to them and they exaggerate those things. Sometimes only a little bit, sometimes beyond reality.

For my own photos, I've discovered that I love bright, vibrant colors with true-to-life white balance and medium contrast. As many times as I've tried editing photos to fit a specific mood or trend, I always come back to this.

Sometimes this doesn't feel like much of a photographic style at all. It's almost a lack of any specific style. Like my brain wants everything to be true and accurate, with just a slight pop of brightness and color.

It almost feels like I don't want to lie too much about what I actually saw. It's a strange internal argument and I don't understand it yet.

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