On Episode 2 of AFireSideTalk, I wanted to share what has been the best piece of advice I’ve ever received. One that has substantially improved my photography, increased the ROI of my experiences in life, and given me a much more incredible amount of joy:
“Get closer”
I did spend the first big chunk of the episode ranting about landscape vs. portrait vs. square formats in photography. Then I had to tend to the fire, nearly burning my hand on a few occasions (I must really take the idea of “get closer” to heart…). But I eventually made my way around to it.
There’s a great quote from Italian war-time photographer Robert Capa:
“If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough”
And that’s coming from a guy who took pictures of bayonets and bloodshed.
Why get closer?
Well, first of all, photos aesthetically do look better when you’re closer. Maybe it’s because the camera knows what to focus on, or it can retain more detail, or it locks much more effectively on the subject. Who knows. But I’ve taken a bunch of photos. The best ones are when I’m close.
Secondly, and this is what I’ve found in my experiences, people would much rather be immersed in the scene. Unless you’re purposely trying to make your subject feel distant ( with a subject who is mysterious, alluring, or unattainable), shooting from far away generally makes your audience feel alienated.
So, as a photographer, when you get closer, you have a much better chance of making the viewer feel immersed in your frame. And humans crave connection, to be a part of the story, to feel like they were there.
And that’s nothing new.
And, although it may be hard to believe, this craving is not some discovery by me – we all know this from how our technology is evolving (specifically in virtual reality helmets). The idea of “being there” is so potent for us. And, as Terrence McKenna pointed out, we’ve been doing it since the beginning of time:
it’s worth pointing out that we have been making virtual realities for a very, very long time. That language—spoken language—is the original code for hacking virtual reality. When you sit the children down around the fire and begin to tell the old, old stories, and the pictures rise out of the flames, that is virtual reality. And so is—and this is the point I want to make—so are all the artifacts, all the impedimenta of human existence. I mean, a virtual reality built in aluminum, stucco, steel, and glass is not immediately erased the way you clear a screen. And the cost of making it is great. But Ur was a virtual reality. The Agora at Athens, ancient Rome, Canterbury Cathedral—these are virtual realities.
“Dreaming Awake at the End of Time
So what does this mean for you in your daily life?
To get closer to life means to become fully immersed. Immersed in your surroundings and immersed in your actions. To truly believe that you are who you say you are, to act as if, and to be an active participant in what life puts in front of you.
There are times, I pointed out, that it’s lovely to kick back and watch the show unfold in front of you. But you are on your Life’s Stage! Ask more questions, dig deeper, and become.
That is your homework: Get closer.