Dissagreeing, Taste and Style in Photography

Post 27

Disagreeing

It is hard to hold different opinions than people you care about. I have very different political views than a couple who are very important to me. They have a massive Trump flag in their garage; I shuddered when I saw it. They also believe in eating and killing animals for pleasure. As a liberal, vegan, pacifist, you could be forgiven for expecting me to hate them, but I don’t. I would run into a burning building to save them; I would do anything to help them; they are good people, but we disagree on a few things. And yes, those things are critical to me, but I decided I could disagree with them and still have their loving presence in my life. Is it easy? It is challenging sometimes, and we discuss these complex subjects, but we all respect each other’s intentions. We have even navigated these issues on social media!

When approaching people whose views differ from mine, I first try to understand why they hold their views. Then, I want to make sure we are both educated with the same information. Am I, or are they missing critical information that could affect each other’s views? Providing them easy access to the information that I find compelling is useful, but only if the source is one that they trust. It is no good sending a CNN article to a Fox News viewer and expecting them to trust it. The most potent way is to provide them with evidence from people and sources they trust, politicians they trust, or pundits they follow. It is also not helpful to make inferences about information and expect them to make the same inferences; they usually won’t; they are examining the information with their own biases and history, not yours.

Effective communication with people we disagree with is an essential life skill. Over the coming months, we will have many opportunities to practice this skill.

Taste and Style in Photography

In the wedding photography community, there has been a debate called “Sepia-gate,” which revolves around a bride who decided well after her wedding that she didn’t like the style of the photographs that her chosen photographer made. The pictures were technically excellent and consistent with the photographer’s style. The problem was that the bride didn’t like the style. The photographer warned her of her style, and she shared examples of her style with the bride before they signed the contract. But sometime after the wedding, the bride decided she no longer liked the style; this got me thinking: what is my style?

I think the answer is that I don’t yet have a consistent style. When I was asked to describe my artistic style in my Art School Application, the best I could come up with was Realistic. I know that it will evolve as I learn more. I enjoy black and white and especially experimenting with moving the black and white point to vary the contrast. I also enjoy long-exposure photographs of water. Somehow, these aspects will evolve into a style with time and practice. I currently do not make enough photographs regularly to allow that to occur, but I am optimistic that the rigours of Art School will provide the impetus for this.

I give you this dark, moody sunrise and another colourful sunset.

See the inconsistency? I need help!

Help Needed

Do you know what also needs help? Our national Parks and Wildernesses. Project 25 on page 523 suggests allowing mining in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. This policy has been repeatedly rejected by the local government and the federal environmental reviews as there is no way that anyone has found to protect the water, land and animals from the inevitable pollution caused by mineral extraction and waste disposal. If we exploit minerals everywhere they exist, we will lose all our natural wildernesses and the habitat necessary for biodiversity maintenance. Project 25 threatens all National Parks, Wildernesses and Monuments, specifically naming those in the Mid-West, Utah and Alaska. If you disagree with selling off, mining and drilling for mineral extraction in our national parks and wildernesses, please educate yourself on the intentions of Project 25 and vote accordingly in November.