Mediocrity in photography

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m as guilty as others of mediocrity in my photography. There is a variety of reasons for this phenomenon. Some of this mediocrity can be blamed on the lack of dedication to excellence that has become commonplace in society. Still, I believe it goes much deeper on a personal level. As artists and photographers, we don’t push ourselves to strive for excellence. We accept a plethora of excuses such as, the light was bad, it was happening so fast, I didn’t have the right equipment, I was striving for realism (often times the resulting photograph was as far from realism as anything else because of last of planning, poor technique, or other operator failures.

We each view the world through our own personal filters despite all our efforts otherwise. We base our art and photographs on our past experiences and beliefs. We often don’t challenge ourselves to look beyond those experiences and beliefs or question them. We further our case for mediocrity by surrounding ourselves with like thinkers. Rarely do artists or anyone for that matter surround themselves with people who will say “what if” or “I disagree because”. The further issue is that a huge number of photographers and artists chase trends. They chase new gear, current photographic trends for likes and popularity, and what is fashionable. Our photographic forefathers pushed the limits. They were innovators looking to create the next best thing rather than chasing what was popular. So many of us are afraid to blaze a new trail or to embrace new techniques and tools. We are afraid to push the limits of even ourselves. We see but do not truly see, we point the camera and press the button.

What if, we questioned our beliefs? What if we pushed our boundaries? What if we, like those who came before us, became innovators rather than regurgitating what everyone else is doing? I believe we, at least ourselves, will rise above mediocrity. Let us blaze new trails. Let us embrace new techniques and tools to create cutting-edge art. Let us not accept mediocrity for ourselves and set the path for others to follow in the same manner. This is the way to stand out as artists and photographers.