Dan Smith articles

[bill_harris1]

The articles I have found by Dan Smith on The Photo-Critique page(

linked to this page under'snazzy-new links') are some of the most

informative I have ever read..Reading his articles can give you a

greater insight about all types of photography and can answer a lot

of your questions. They have been most helpful to me..

[thomas_martin]

I have to agree. Dan has some very informative and some of them even

'inspiring' articles on there.

[john_n._wall]

I must be web illiterate -- where is Dan's work located?

 

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Can't find it.

[pete_dickson1]

The articles are at http://sunrise.scu.edu/photo/digest/index.html

 

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I agree that there's some good stuff there.

[jim_bridges1]

Dan Smith is not only an excellent photographer, he is also great

communicator in the techniques of photography. I have been reading

his articles every month for last year, and I always get some kind of

inspiration from them. Thanks for telling all of us about this site

Bill.

[chris_hawkins]

Dan is an accomplished pro who loves what he does and is willing to

share his knowledge with others. If I have understood him correctly,

he believes that money alone can't make you a decent photographer.

Attention to detail, practice and artistic vision are more

important. That is a great message for all of us to learn and

remember.

[dan_smith]

I enjoy writing the articles and hope they help some of those who

take time to read them. I purposely steer clear of overly technical

explanations. There are many who are excellent at this part of

photography and I will refer the readers to them. Yes, I can discuss

H&D curves, density & developer differences but it is so easy to get

bogged down if you aren't careful. I see photography as basically

easy and find way too many who neglect the basics & make it

difficult. The latest/greatest cameras don't make good photogaphers,

they only make photographers with good equipment.(and in some cases

are a complete waste of money if you won't learn to use them properly)

The basics are the same for everyone, film/camera and lenses. Choice

in what exposure to use, how to frame the image, where the plane of

greatest sharpness should lie, how to set off your subject against

the background and just how much time you really want to spend on

this pursuit is a personal choice. My ideas and methods are not the

only way to do anything, they work for me. My images aren't the only

ones to look at, they are only my representation of how I see. Look

at the work of many others and let your intelligence be your guide as

to whether they shoot well or merely talk a good image. No matter

how I hop up my 74 VW van, it won't be a ferrari and no matter how I

try to shoot the finest quality, I can't with mediocre lenses. But, I

can work well within the limitations of my gear and so can anyone

else willing to put in the effort. Technically, another lens or film

may be better, but what good is technical perfection expressed in

boring photographs?

I try to encourage good photography and creative use of gear one

should be familiar enough with to enable them to get consistantly

good results. For me, photography is that simple. I hope I help

some others to find their level of comfort & make the basics simple

so they can improve their technique to the point where it doesn't

matter and the concentration is on expressing the internal

perspective in good images.

Thanks to those who read the articles & thanks to photo.net which has

allowed me comments and exchanges which help in formulating the

topics I can cover which I hope helps the readers. And yes, I do

take suggestions if you care to send them.

[marcus_erne]

Thanks for your great articles Dan. Anxiously I am waiting for the next, every month...!!!

[msitaraman]

Great stuff, Dan ! I always check several times at the start of the month to see if you have written a new article.

 

Very thoughtful, but more importantly, gentle and encouraging, these articles should be required reading in every photo course and school.

 

Its also easy to see that Dan brings the same methodical care to his enjoyable writing that he must to his photography.

 

Many thanks indeed for a great service to us all.