Can a pro take snapshots anymore?

Question

Once you become an advanced amateur, or a pro, is it still possible to take snapshots? Can our images be purely spontaneous anymore?

I ask because a tourist asked me to take a picture of them with their camera. Instead of just taking the shot, I moved them over a little bit so the Golden Gate Bridge made a nice background and then took the shot. The rest of the day, I noticed that even my spur of the moment shots, ones I am NOT consciously thinking about, get marginally composed and my fingers tend to take care of the business of exposure setting, focus, etc., and I immediately move to a position where I think the image will work better. Like I said, I don't think about it, I just do it.

Can you just take a point and shoot snapshot anymore?

Answer 1

This is not really a fair question, or perhaps, not a well framed question.



Rhetorically, one can pose a question, "Is it possible for an amateur to take an excellent photograph with a point and shoot camera?"



The answer is, obviously, yes. Given that certain factors come tothether, such as luck, some, instinctive talent and such, it can, and, often does happen.



The term, "snapshot," then loses meaning, no matter who is taking the photograph. Not every experienced photographer uses the exact same processes that you do, but experience teaches your brain, hands and whatever else you carry within you, what makes a good shot. If you hadn't moved those tourists over a bit, it might still have been a "good shot." You would, probably framed them well and held off tripping the shutter untill the moment was "right." Including the Golden Gate Bridge made the picture that much better, but an amateur may have made the exact same decision.



There was a time, when I considered myself a talented hobbyist, I could walk around an outdoor setting, camera in hand, looking for good shots. When walking from shade, to full sunlight, cloud passing by, etc. My hand, already on the apreture ring, would automatically click up and down the f-stops, usually without any conscious thought. When the time came to shot, such as some wildlife, a race car, etc All I did was pull the camera up to my eye, do a quick focus and ... shoot. Didn't always have time to set up, or bracket my exposures. Sure, not every frame was excellent or, even usable, but I got a lot of images I might have otherwise missed if I hadn't developed the instincts I had. These shots are what the literal dictionary meaning of "snapshots" are. But they were, also, among my most successful photographs.



So, again, it's not whether or not an experienced photographer can ever take "snapshots." The statement CAN be, fairly, made that he/she can CONSISTANTLY get better shots than one who is not.



Kind of like professional level sports. In pro football, "on any given Sunday," any team can beat any other. But, are my Forty-Niners going to the Superbowl this year?



Doubt it.

Answer 2

We've talked about this a little bit before. There's nothing wrong with pointing and shooting with a LITTLE "common sense" about it. As long as you don't stack a polarizer on a split neutral density filter for every shot, you can still consider it a snapshot. This is why your snapshots will be better than the other guy's snapshots.



Maybe you saw the recent question where someone asked what kind of camera was needed to take "really professional looking pictures." The biggest problem was that the shot included a huge blank wall and a stairway. http://people.clarkson.edu/~tirumsa/apple/images/My%20Pictures0012.jpg All I did was crop it for better composition and a added "little" color improvement in PSE, but it was mostly a matter of the photographer not knowing the first thing about composition. This is still a snapshot. http://www.flickr.com/photos/samfeinstein/1414716033/



Or recently, I mentioned a snapshot of a friend in from of Lucy the Elephant. My son stood right next to me and took the "same" photo with another point and shoot camera. Let's just say that his was "disappointing." I knew to take a better reading and I did it without even thinking about it. If I had thought about it, I would have suggested that he do the same thing, but I guess it is so automatic that it didn't even occur to me that one might do it any other way. Not to mention, at least I got the whole elephant into the shot... http://www.flickr.com/photos/samfeinstein/1384865092/



I'm not even a pro and my brain works this way, so I'm sure yours just can't help it. It would be like me not brushing my teeth.

Answer 3

i took some snapshots on the way to a job lately- composition/viewpoint where ok, but they were just run of the mill tourist snaps - taken not made as i was in a hurry to get to a job....but really a trained/schooled professional will always produce better snaps just because of their knowledge of composition/exposure etc.



once a person has some skill it tends to influence their shots, just like any skill that has been learnt and practiced in any other trade - like an electrician will tend to do things electrical better and more efficiently than a wanna be or "handyman" - the electrician will know how and do it instintively



your snaps you treated me to show a sensitivity that amateurs and non-trained "eyes/eye" would just never see. a pro will instictively look for the best compositions etc, most Am's just put the face/subject in the middle of the frame and "take a photo"



so my quotes: it takes as long to compose poorly as it does to compose well



amateurs "take photos", pros make images



nice question thanks Vance



a

Answer 4

I'm no pro, more advanced amateur. But I can still take snapshots, mostly when I'm in a hurry. But the difference is that if I can make it better, I will do whatever I can to.



It drives my husband crazy sometimes the lengths I go to for a better picture. I'll yell at him to stop the car so I can get out for a good picture of the skyline, but then he will suggest driving a little further to get a closer picture. He thinks closer means better. But once we get closer, he jumps out for a picture, but I just don't see anything photo worthy there, so I tell him "pass".



And that's another thing. Shots other people recommend aren't usually the best ones to me. (shrug)

Answer 5

Of course, but a pro's snapshots are highly likely to better than the average person's simply due to their training and experience. A pro would have to intentionally ignore that training and experience to shoot a photo equal to that of a rank amateur. So, yes, you can, but why would you want to?

Answer 6

LOL! I think you answered your own question: no.

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