You’re Programming Your Future Self
Every photograph exists in two phases: the taking and the revisiting. Most photographers never consciously separate them. That’s part of why so…
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Personal
Photography as a way to get on with the universe
The universe doesn’t care about us. That’s not pessimism; it’s physics. We’re pattern-seeking creatures dropped into a system operating on principles entirely…
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Street Photography Makes Me Uncomfortable mk2
I was re-reading some of my old posts lately because I’ve started work on a mini book based on my Substack posts’…
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The Evolution of Photographic Meaning
I’ve been thinking about how photographers develop over time. Looking at what I’ve been writing over the last few months, I see…
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How Photography Works In My Head #6: Working With Your Cognitive Style Instead of Against It
Once you understand your cognitive profile, the question becomes what to do with that understanding. You can fight your natural architecture, trying…
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How Photography Works In My Head #5: Finding Your People Through Cognitive Style
Your audience self-selects partly based on shared cognitive architecture. This isn’t about intelligence or sophistication. It’s about whether your mode of thinking…
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When You Stop Treating Photography As a Performance, You Can Embrace Your Self Image
My mother sometimes jokes that she raised a ghost, because there are barely any photographs of me as a child or teenager.…
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How Photography Works In My Head #4: Teaching Photography to Brains That Work Differently
Photography instruction assumes cognitive uniformity. Teachers describe their own process and expect students to replicate it. “Learn to see the light.” “Pre-visualise…
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Live Photography is About Life
I can tell you exactly how I felt standing on a sand dune in Morocco many years ago, watching my wife photograph…
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How Photography Works In My Head #3: Why Some Photographers Can’t Write About Their Work
Photography education and criticism privilege verbal articulation. You’re expected to be able to explain your work, discuss your influences, articulate your intentions,…
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