I got a question the other day about how to develop a clear style when your images feel all over the place. Here's one reason that can feel so hard: when you're photographing, it's all about visual/emotional response. For some reason, though, it’s tempting to completely switch gears when editing (selecting) images for a portfolio or website. The visual hat comes off, the analytical hat goes on. And suddenly, it's not enjoyable and natural anymore. You feel blocked and blah and it seems like you don't understand your own work.
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Here's what I like to remember: we're visual artists. The visual is our zone of genius. So, it's amazingly helpful to bring the same spirit of visual/emotional excitement to our editing (selecting) process. When we do that, a weight lifts and it becomes easier.⠀
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Here's an idea to play with: look at your recent work and pull together all your dark images (or all your light images). Just plop them into a folder on your desktop. Don't let the analytical brain take the driver's seat (you'll know when that happens when you're tempted to put all your bicycle images together, regardless of what they look like, or all your Italy images together, even though you shot in 12 different styles when you were there and they look totally random together). Just look and feel. What jives...visually? ⠀
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Here's the lovely thing (it sounds simple but it's powerful): if you lead with a visual response, the work ends up hanging together visually. If you suddenly stop being a visual artist when you're editing your folio, the work winds up looking hodgepodge and awkward. ⠀
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When you're shooting, it's all about: "Ooo! That's beautiful!" and "Oh! I love that!" or "I have no idea why I'm drawn to that, but I can't resist!" Right? You really can bring that same spirit into your editing. After all, you already have it in you. ⠀