We’ve all done it. Used words like “fabulous”, “incredible”, “stunning” to describe photographic works that we see posted online or hung in a gallery. Sometimes we actually mean it. Sometimes we say it to be nice. We hope those words will be applied to our work too. In this age of social media, praise is often a given and we think something is wrong if it doesn’t come.
But eventually, we all reach a point in our own personal journey where we become more selective. We don’t offer praise as readily. Perhaps your own work also becomes a bit monotonous. Perhaps you have seen too many of the same presentation of a piece, even if expertly done. I hear that often happens to those asked to judge competitions. They may rate an otherwise superb item very low just because they have seen something similar before, often many times before.
It is said that familiarity breeds contempt. Even in art. We are taught from an early age to strive for the next victory, to be the best and to not stop there. But because art is so subjective, how do you know when you are looking at something truly stunning?
For me, it’s all about the emotional reaction I have to a piece. Does it make me stop doing whatever other thing I was doing to admire it? Does it take my breath away? Do I linger watching it? Do I struggle to describe what I am feeling?
Take a walk with me. I’d like to explore just one photograph that I label as “stunning” and reveal why. This photograph was taken by a young insanely talented wildlife/bird photographer in the UK by the name of Rachel Bigsby.
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