Photography is a broad field and apart from a different style of photography, like analog, digital, b&w to diverse categories like wedding, bird photography, sports photography, nude, fashion, etc… there is one thing that makes the most difference in being recognized. That is your personal style.
Who are you, as a photographer and what story do you want to tell? How are you telling the story?
It sure doesn’t happen overnight, for some, it might take years of training and experience to finally shape their own style, and for some, it might never be fully defined. Photography is art and just like other artists, photographers go through eras of different styles, influenced by our mentors, the environment, work opportunities and sometimes even muses.
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What defines a photographer’s style?
Style can be defined by numerous different aspects. It might be how someone’s cropping their photos, to the way they’re editing them, a certain angle they might be shooting from or a particular color that always seems to be a part of their photo.
We all have stumbled across a recognizable photo before, where you look at the single shot and knew in an instant, who took it. And there it is, that photographer’s personal style has been successfully developed. That is a point, where you’d want to be!
A couple of months back, I decided to feature artists that I love every once in a while, and I thought this would be a great time to do so. I’m so excited because there are so many creative and unique people around BC that there’s never enough exploring and connecting with like-minded people. Squamish alone is full of woodworkers, photographers, painters, from professionals to weekend hobbies, easily being a place full of creative artists.
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There are many photographers with unique styles, who are instantly recognizable. I do have personal favorites to whom I look up to with my work. You might even know some, local and international:
Over the last few years of practicing photography and finally enjoying it professionally as a career, I have learned a couple of tips that I’m excited to share with you today, in terms of shaping your own style! I do believe everyone is different, I mean talk about style… so these tips might work for some, while not for others.
Don’t copy others.
I understand how tempting it is, to take someone’s work and copy-paste it onto yours. Why work on developing something unique of someone else’s work is already beautiful and inspiring and it totally fits your jam. Well, it doesn’t quite work like that. I do love to look up to others for inspiration and seeing a different angle of how someone’s viewing a scene, but there is no point of duplicating something that has already been done. Trust me, people and your potential clients will see through that in a second! Rather than copying someone else, try to see it from another point of view and see how that reflects on your photos.
See what inspires you!
What do you always watch out for, when shooting? Do you have a particular way of capturing the moment and when do you enjoy yourself the most? I love shooting sports for example. Being an athlete myself, I personally appreciate and admire what some pro athletes do in extreme sports. I find it inspiring to see how much work and dedication goes to flipping a trick or sending it down a steep slope. I love photographing sports because I get to enjoy a part of their stoke in the moments of happing. It feels very rewarding, which also reflects on my work!
Your style is what sets you apart. How do you do that? By doing the opposite what everyone else is doing. By doing what nobody is ever done before.
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Take a look.
Spend a few days going through your hard drive and scrolling through your photos! What do you notice? Take some notes and compare the common factors in the photos. When I’m shooting surfing or working with brands of the surf industry I always love to use my classic clean, bright and open look. A style that is open to interpretation and very modern at the same time, maybe even timeless. Looking back at your photos is a good way of self-reflection, even in photography!
I hope you have a better idea now, on how to work on your style as an artist, let me know which things worked for you ~ and share your Instagram so I can check out your content!
More about Alenka
“My name is Alenka and I’m a Squamish based photographer. I love using my medium to capture sports, adventures, underwater shots, adventures in the mountains and days on snow! Very simply put, I’m one stoked girl, ready to get up at 2 in the morning and hike for sunrise, go to the airport and take a random flight…you name it!
Photography, web design and digital marketing have been things I’m proud to call my job lately! Very flexible, lots of traveling and even more adventures than when I was a kid. Here, on my website I share tips on photography, spreading awareness about the zero-waste lifestyle and sustainability and crazy stories from my travels. Welcome.”
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3 Comments
FERNANDO
BEATIFULL PHOTOS OK
Alenka Mali
Thank you Fernando!! 🙂