How we learn, by asking question about what we are intrigued over, what we don’t quite understand, translated…
As we take photos underneath the bright sunlight, there’s a technique called “burnishing”, through adjusting the percentage of light exposures, and adjusting the wattage of the flash, making the background darker, while the subject normal. Normally, the goal in this, is to have the subject stand OUT, to make the subject appear even more three-dimensional, a lot of the portraits taken outdoors, would often use this technique, so the photos looked more substantial. To tell the truth, earlier in my photography career, I’m, against the manual methods, just like how I’m against putting on makeup, felt, that this intentionally setting things up, would cover up the original looks. I’d told myself to find the light, to find the beauty in what I was photographing, instead of using someone’s angles, to interpret, than, to add something to it, to the photos, to make them appear good. But, the heavens, it’d, twisted my beliefs, gave me an assignment, I hated putting makeup on, and yet, I work in front of a screen; I’d hated adding the light to my own work, but, I’d, received a special sort of a photography gig, my instincts told me, that I’d, needed to, control the light, to do it, perfectly.
the photo the woman took using the skills of burnishing
I recalled what Sebastiao Salgado wrote in “Salgado’s Stares”, “in Greek, photo means light, graph means to write, to sketch, to draw. Those who use light to write and to sketch and draw, are the, photographers.” And, if the belief of the techniques of adding light is about the accumulations of the photographers’ observations of what beauty entailed over the years, then, through ones’ own hands, making the light again, to sketch up a frame, then, even though, this wasn’t, natural, but needless to say, it is, a higher form of, artistry. And, as I’d, finally, broken that barrier I set for myself down, I’d started, studying the footages, read up on the skills, the techniques, and exchanged secrets with a member of a light crew on set, she’d taught me the basics of operating the flashes, I’d taught her how to develop the films, the two of us were like humans, taking the samples from the society of man, bartering, it was, quite, an interesting experience.
Later, one day when it wasn’t raining, with the sun out, I’d, dragged out a box of equipment, ran to the Riverside Park to practice using the flash. As I was ending my sessions, three young girls came over from a distance, one of them asked me, “older sister, what’s this shiny big ball for?” I’d thought I was, going to, get treated as someone weird, but, I’d found, that these young children were, intrigued by the equipment I was, using, and so, I’d answered, “This is the flash of a camera” “there’s a lot of light during the daytime, why are you using it?” these children came up with logical questions about the light, I’d used a simplified example, to explain the purpose, the techniques of burnishing. After they received a satisfactory answer, they’d hopped away, waving goodbye back to me.
Watching them leave, I’d, thought, with the light in my hand: if I were one of the man with these equipment, then, would these three young children feel relaxed, and come and ask a stranger what I was doing? If they are concerned about safety, and that’d, prevented them to become curious of the world, then, wouldn’t that take many opportunities of learning brand new things from them? As I thought up to here, I’d, collected up my equipment, and, affirmed my own actions, and told myself that no matter what, I shall, keep on, taking pictures like I am doing right now!
And so, this, is how you become, an expert in something, because you’re interested in photography, that drove you to learn ALL you can about it and, in the process of your own finding out more on the subject, you’d, encountered those who are intrigued by your behaviors, and, shared interesting interactions with them too.