Attempting to excel in photography is more than just taking inspiration from the works of the masters. Learning from the best photographers entails a set of qualities that we must have to make our works meaningful and remarkable. It’s the timeless relevance of the subject, the method of shooting and the approach chosen that makes our work worth the appreciation and study.

All great photographers at some point started off with passion and found purpose in their chosen profession. They explored the horizons of photography at photography schools and beyond. We at Hamstech Institute keenly urge the students to look at the famous works and understand why they are considered so topnotch.

It is true that the technology of photography has made giant leaps. But students of photography courses know that there are also qualitative elements that photography needs for perfection. The technique just serves the vision. Hence, learning photography is a comprehensive learning of the vision and technique involved in a shoot.

Many internationally acclaimed photographers have created wonderful and iconic pictures that say enough about their fame. They are a huge source of inspiration for photography training courses.

 

Connect Like Annie

 

 

Annie Liebovitz, the famous American portrait photographer, is most famous for her portrait of John Lennon hours before his assassination. She’s worked for magazines like Rolling Stones and Vanity Fair.

In her style of photography, she pictured her celebrity subjects in a very intimate fashion that in fact brought out genuineness of their characters.

The lesson to learn from Annie is to explore the original side of the subject and connect with it to make the photograph gain undisputed authenticity.

 

Click like Ansel

 

 

Ansel Adams is renowned for his stupendous photography of many stunning and famous landscapes. His most famous work is his photograph of Yosemite National Park.

He dexterously developed his pictures applying unparalleled darkroom skills. His black and white landscape photographs were developed using his mastery in setting tones and shades using dodging and burning techniques.

The best to learn from Ansel Adams is the art of visualisation. He was also great with handling the fall of light on his frames using the “zone” technique. Even in the digital age, following his strong and effective techniques, makes unique, top-class photography possible.

 

Learning Patience from Duffy

 

 

Brian Duffy, the English Photographer, is famous for his works in fashion and portrait photography. His works are said to collectively present a visual history of a quarter century of culture and fashion in British history.

Ever since he started with photography, he had a raging interest in fashion photography. Along with his fellow photographers, he clicked extensive frames portraying the fashion and lifestyle of the 60s and the 70s.

Then, his sudden loss of interest in photography in 1979 led him to attempt to burn the negatives of all his works. This was fortunately interrupted and many of them recovered and preserved for good. He died in 2010 succumbing to chronic lung disease.

Brian Duffy reminds us about the need of introspection and taking time for finding inspiration. Every photograph is a testimony of one’s dedication and vision which cannot be lost to momentary burn offs.

 

Dedication like Dorothy’s

 

 

Dorothea Lange was an American documentary photographer and photojournalist. She’s best known for exhaustively capturing scenes from world events like the Great Depression. Her iconic picture named “Migrant Mother” is counted among world’s most famous photographs.

After getting educated in photography at Columbia University, she did apprenticeship at many studios in New York before turning her lens towards the maladies of the Great Depression. She also captured the plight of people in Japanese internment camps. These presented a visual profile of the worst times of American history.

Dorothy sets an example in complete dedication to one theme or a project at a time. Right from the training at a photography training institute, one must defeat the temptation to go fickle and random about one’s works.

Every photographer, acquires in the course of his learning and practice, a distinct signature style and approach to photography. It adds to the variety that expands the boundaries of photography as an art. Learning best practices and getting inspired by examples combinely does wonders to one’s works.