Summer has arrived and with it long, languorous days and peaceful nights. I imagine many of you have been wondering, where’s Chris Murray these days, I haven’t heard or read much from him lately. Life hasn’t been the same, has it? I have been experiencing writer’s block for the last few months. Ideas have been hard to come by, or I have an idea, only to find after a few sentences that there is little there. A recent late-evening foray into YouTube provided fodder for what follows. It may be somewhat self-derivative, but it’s written so there you have it.
I watched a recent interview with the band members of R.E.M. that coincided with their induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. One aspect that stood out to me and that I found both admirable and relatable was their unanimous interest in being songwriters first. The musicianship was secondary. The guitarist, Peter Buck, confessed he considers himself a better songwriter than a guitar player. However, his talent on the guitar was enough for the music they wrote. More accurately, he wrote songs that best suited his abilities. Overall, the band’s songwriting acumen made them unique, not they’re playing. I recall the lead singer and bassist for RUSH saying something similar in an interview. Despite his prodigious talent as a bass player, he envisioned himself as a songwriter first. Interesting.
It behooves any artist to have knowledge of or at least interest in another artistic medium, providing not only another creative outlet but also helping to inform one’s chosen medium. Given my love of music (as a listener only, I’m sorry to admit), I often look for parallels between music and photography concerning the creative process. This is nothing new, of course. No doubt many of you are familiar with the famous and oft-referenced Ansel Adams quote, “The negative is the score, the print is the performance.” While differences exist between the two mediums, namely music being an additive art and photography subtractive, this distinction between writing and playing a piece of music offers lessons for the photographer.
A photograph is a product of both imagination and skill. The choice of subject matter, composition, and how it is rendered are all products of the photographer’s creative mind. They represent the artistic half of photography, akin to songwriting in music. The equipment used, camera settings, and skill with software are the craft side of the equation. In other words, what is done with the subject matter is the art, how it is accomplished is the craft. Relatively speaking, craft is the easy part. Mike Mills, the bassist for R.E.M., asserts that anyone can pick up the guitar or learn to play the piano to some degree, but not anyone can write a good song. As a musician, he may be oversimplifying it some. It’s much easier in photography. Anyone can pick up their camera or smartphone and make a beautiful photo; the real challenge is being creative.
I have watched more hours than I care to admit of amateur musicians on YouTube doing covers of some of my favorite drum bits. Their musicianship is beyond question, and as a wannabe drummer, I am green with envy. It looks like so much fun. However, despite their immense skill, do they write music? Or will they forever be parroting the works of others? Think of the tribute bands roaming the country these days, mimicking their musical heroes note for note. I equate them with those photographers who simply wish to learn how a certain photographer “did it” so they can do it themselves. They will create beautiful photos, but absent creative expression they are more a copy than an original creation born of their imagination.
Having a firm grasp of craft is important in any artistic medium, insofar as being able to express what you want to convey. But, it is what you do with the subject matter that makes the art special. I am not the most skilled person when it comes to processing my images in Lightroom and Photoshop. I have yet to purchase and learn Tony Kuyper’s luminosity masking software. However, for the images I make I don’t feel it’s necessary. I don’t need to be the best technician, only good enough to express my vision creatively.
As a photographer, are you more interested in the what or the how?
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