First 1,000 Hours of Deliberate Practice Learning the Art of Photography
It’s July 2018 and I’ve now put in 1,000 hours learning photography through deliberate practice, and am consequently ten percent through my 10,000 hour project.
10,000 hours of deliberate practice is often compared to a 5 year industrial apprenticeship. So after 1,000 hours of graft, I should now, just about, be capable of making the gaffer a cup of tea!
The best tip was from David Boag on 23 January, when he gave a lecture to the Stoke Poges Photographic Club: “To increase creativity; whenever a shot is good enough to take, also take it from two further angles.” This forces you to think about alternative perspectives and images that can be made from the same subject. I have been deliberately practicing this every time I go out shooting, and am hopefully on my way to making it a habit.
Technically, I feel comfortable using Capture One for RAW processing and initial processing then passing the image to lightroom for further processing in Photoshop, output to JPEG and/ or social media channels (flickr, facebook, instagram), and long term storage. See: “Post Processing Workflow Revision“.
The biggest change for me is that I have started to understand photographic styles and some of the photographers associated with them, as described in my post “First Notes on the History of Photography as an Art Form.” In general, I am taking a more informed view on my visits to galleries and exhibitions. Clearly though, still a long way to go.
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To see more posts on other photographic topics, or to follow my learning progress, please like or follow me on the social media channel of your choice to the right.
First Full 1,000 Hours
As with previous posts such “The First 500 Hours – Review at 5%”, I will concentrate on the qualifying activity since the last post to avoid excessive repetition, i.e., hours 501 to 1,000. However, to enable comparison with later/ future 1,000 hour reviews, I will be attempting to cover the whole period.
Changes in Personal Circumstances
At Hour Zero I had a full time job and have since then been gradually extricating myself from business activities which, at the time of writing this, is almost completed. This means that for the last couple of months I have been able to devote myself to this project pretty much full time.
Now, when people ask me what I “do”, I now tell them “I’m a photographer.”
| Genre | ….. | No/ Little Experience | ….. | Some Experience |
| Much Interest |
Still Life Photography Black and White Photography Experimental Photography |
Street Photography Abstract Travel Photography Portrait Photography |
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| Less Interest |
HDR Photography Fashion Photography Advertising Photography Aerial Photography Photojournalism |
Landscape Photography Sports Photography Wedding Photography |
I am also beginning (only beginning) to think more visually – rather than in terms of lists and matrices (as above).
Overview of Photography Activity
In-camera skills learnt:
- flash, both on and off-camera
- macro, using extension tubes behind my f/1.4 50mm prime (see: my kit)
- shooting tethered directly to Capture One Pro
Top locations shot include:
- Lanzarote (Landscapes, Seascapes, Cesar Manrique)
- Minehead
- Andalusia Spain (Seville, Cordoba, Granada)
- Semana Santa (Spanish Holy Week at the above locations)
- Christmas in British Columbia, Canada (Vancouver, Chilliwack).
Posts during hours 0 – 1,000:
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Noteworthy Images
Events Attended
Several meetings of the Stoke Poges Photographic Club.
Monthly meetings of the RPS’s Thames Valley Digital Imaging Group.
RPS Courses:
- Macro and Art Photography
- The Art of Creative Living – Creating a Personal Blueprint for Success.
Exhibitions:
- London Nights – Museum of London
- Wildlife Photographer of the Year – Natural History Museum (13 Mar 2018)
- Picasso 1932 – Tate Modern (visit notes for: 27 Mar 2018)
- The Shape of Light – Tate Modern, an exposition of the synergistic relationship between abstract and experimental painters and photographers (03 May 2018 and 23 May 2018)
- Andreas Gursky – Hayward Gallery, Southbank Centre (15 Feb 2018).
Books Read
“How to write about Contemporary Art” – Gilda Williams
“London Nights” – Museum of London
“Criticizing photographs” – Terry Barrett
“Really Good Dog Photography” – Hoxton Mini Press
“Picasso: A Biography” by Patrick O’Brian
“Leonardo Da Vinci” – Walter Issacson
“Spectrum” by John Pawson, a collection of minimalist images, by the renown architect (and photographer), arranged in colour order which emphasises their abstract quality.
“What is Art?” – John Canaday.
New Influences
Photography:
- Sean Tucker – Intelligent and inspirational YouTuber, portrait and street photographer
- Elizabeth Rafferty – In addition to being a great photographer herself, she’s a terrific speaker on the history of photography
- Ted Forbes – YouTube “The Art of Photography” – user of both Sony kit & Capture One, which helps.
- Capture One Pro – Great YouTubes on using their software for retouching all kinds ofi mages
- Serge Ramelli – Mentioned in my 250 hours review but still “Inspirational” although does most of his editing in Lightroom Classic CC
Artists:
Picasso dominated my thought over the last 1,000 hours with both his big 1931 exhibition at the Tate Modern and my reading of his biography by Patrick O’Brian.
Cesar Manrique, a friend and contemporary of Picasso but from Lanzarote.
Hiroshi Sugimoto, particularly his seascapes, often compared to work my Mark Rothko.
Fan Ho, Chinese street photographer
Saul Lieter, street photography.
Thoughts on Art
Critical evaluation of a photographic image or other art work:
- Description: what it is, style, colour palette, what is known about the artist
- Evidenced argument of what it means, what is it trying to achieve. Based on the author’s statement, or what is otherwise known about them.
- Evaluation: does it achieve it’s goals?
- Theory: how does this fit in with or, ideally, advance the genre of art?
Art critique is itself an art form.
Aspirations for Next 1,000 Hours
“Shooting on purpose” was an aspiration for the last 500, which was not really achieved, other than that I realise its importance and will redouble my efforts. Specific tasks as follows:
- Spend an hour planning tomorrow’s activity today
- Look at images produced by other people on the same subject
- Check weather, if appropriate
- Produce a list of shots I’m aiming to achieve
- Logistics including where to park and what equipment to take.
Areas where I need to gain some experience:
- Do more Street Photography
- Macro – set up a rig, maybe buy a macro lens
- Practice and write a post on Abstract photography
- Learn to use an off-camera flash properly
- Review exhibitions using a formal critique process.
Key event is the RPS Licentiate Assessment on 2nd October 2018.
Related Posts:
- At Zero Hours
- After 100 Hours
- After 250 Hours
- After 500 Hours
- After 2,500 Hours
- Half Way – After 5,000 Hours
- After 7,500 Hours
- Goal Achieved – Final Review
Social Media Rankings:
- Facebook: 5 page likes
- Instagram: 13 Followers
- Twitter: Two followers, 8 likes
- Flickr: 4 Followers
- 3 Comments on the site page (including one from me).
Absolutely no promotion during this period, or indeed ever.