I liked to think that I'm an unedited person. I'm terrible at lying. I wear flats 95% of the time. I rock an afro and I almost never have my nails painted. (Too many mediocre gel mani experiences) I'm a #naturalbeauty for the most part. However, I love my red lipstick, high heel boots and sequins on occasion --I am a Gemini. Fresh face Sonique is unedited. Ruby Woo Sonique is edited, like Vogue. But for the most part I'm casual and laidback in my style - sticking to a neutral color palette (and sensible shoes). In an effort to improve my photography and hone in on my style, I'm going to share more unedited photos.
Shooting film has sparked a desire to take great photos that do not require editing (not even minimal edits). I've only had a film camera since January, but it has been an integral part of my development as a photographer. With a film camera there is no digital screen that shows you your mistakes.
One of my film cameras, a Canon AE-1, requires manual focus. You have to truly take your time, and your subject's gotta be still. Even if you don’t have a film camera you can still take film photography elements to improve your digital photography (smart phones included)
The main image for this post is unedited. I didn't even crop it. The clouds were dense and there was a slight mist in the air. The photo was shot with a Canon 1D Mark IV with a 50mm lens - natural light (I'll get into camera elitism later)
Don't get me wrong, I enjoy editing photos. Some of my favorite photos are edited --they have style and punch. Editing is fun. I truly enjoy learning new methods to enhance images in Photoshop and Lightroom. However, it can be cumbersome to edit large batches of photos that have major issues like - exposure, focus, distracting elements. Not only is it time consuming, but some photos look best when they appear untouched.
What would you photograph if you could only take 24 photos and not edit them later? And if you were required to wait 24 hours before seeing them? Instead of taking 30 selfies and only choosing one, why not take one and cherish the rest of your time? [And while you’re at it, stop recording concerts for the gram!]
Thoughts from an analog girl in a digital world