Self or with Help

[DEGREEFOTO]

I was wondering if some one could please define a 'Self Portrait'. No doubt I

would imagine that the interpretation may be different depending in which part

of the planet you are in, but I have noticed over a period of time and in a

couple of Forums, that what I imagine and have been led to believe, are not the

same thing.

 

Am I wrong to think that a Self Portrait is a portrait taken by the

photographer of the photographer or is the interpretation open to

interpretation.

 

Artur

[brucecahn]

Normally that is the case. If you want a self portrait with a view camera, you may need someone else to check the focus and trip the shutter, especially if it is a ULF camera where focus may be only an inch or two.

[twmeyer]

This is when it becomes evident who is a photographer and who is a guy (non-gender specific pronoun) with a camera. If you design all aspects of the image, it doesn't matter who trips the shutter... t

[jason_matos]

I agree with tom - as long as you design the photo and set the camera settings so that all the

person has to do is focus and press the shutter button, then the picture is truely yours - not

theirs because they did nothing to set it up

[DEGREEFOTO]

Yes I take your points folks, except that at times when looking at some shots from various members on this site that have a large section of 'self portraits' it is at times difficult to see where the photographers input ends and their'assitant' helps starts, more so when it comes to composition. I feel that the lighting etc...would be setup by the 'true photographer', but without casting dispertions on anyone, there are shots on this site that the meaning of self portraits, relates to the subject matter and not whether it was all setup by the subject matter, if you know what I mean. After discussing the issue with a few local shooters, I think it all boils down to the different interpretation of the meaning self. I was taught that that meant, you set the shot up, the lighting etc....and pressed the shutter whether with cable on timer all by yourself and not with the help of anyone else. Nevertheless thanks for sharing your points of view.

 

Artur