Most photographers try to improve their work by with new gear, tricks & hacks or classes on composition and the technical subjects of exposure and editing. That’s growth by acquisition and managing tactics without a strategy. Taking pictures instead of making a photograph.

Making a photograph is a lot like writing a book or a poem, an essay or even writing a lettler. The desire is to deliver a message that’s impactful, full of feeling and lets the reader’s imagination wander so they can find their own meaning even if it doesn’t match the photographer’s message.

We’re taught to read and write at the same time. Just the basics, and hopefully that process continues but typically gets focused on writing even if we haven’t been fully exposed to HOW to read.

That makes a good case for taking a little time to learn how to read so that a message is more clearly defined in writing. I’ll go a little deeper with the axiom of “If you want to be a good defense lawyer, spends some time as a prosecutor. You’ll learn how they think and be better prepared when it comes time to do battle. Take another less from Sun Tzu’s “The Art of War”

If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.

The same principle can be applied to photography. Photographers are writers who’ve traded their pen or keyboard for a camera. The images we create should tell a story, one that evokes an emotion and is open to a myriad of interpretation by those who view the images.

If I’m doing my job as a writer, you’re hopefully making your own interpretations and asking if the same applies to music, a chef’s creation or anything else a creative person can create.