"Focus"

What does it mean to you?

To me it's many things. Finding an interesting subject, walking around it, looking for the perfect light, getting ready, and going for the peak action. For that time, there is nothing else on my mind, yet I still somehow manage to scan the area around me staying open to developing action.

It can also be my habit of going out and shooting one thing and one thing only, hoping to get better at it.

Or my current drive to learn how to become a better storyteller with my images.

The more I shoot, the more it becomes about how I treat a subject or scene, and less about what part of the scene is "in" focus.

How about you?

I was talking to my wife last night about something like this. I told her she will have to bear with me for some time, because I will be spending more time with my photography. There are a myriad of reasons (some of which Seb and me have discussed through email, but does not really have anyhting to do with this subject).
One of the reasons, though, was that I feel really "focused" right now (I used that same exact word last night). What this means to me is that I'm "seeing" things well, getting good composition, and I'm becoming more dedicated to either getting up early or staying at a place late to catch the good light.
I'm have also been more focused on learning more about exposure and tonal contrast, which the D70 has certainly been a great tool to learn on because of the instant results.
In short, I'm gaining more confidence in myself and thus I am more focused on learning the craft.

Great post Seb,

I agree with everything you said. Additionally:

My first thought of "focus" is a mind-set, a sort of tunnel vision. But it's also a "viewpoint".

I think we need to look for the right "focus" (viewpoint), and that takes thought. Sometimes it might be easy to <U>think</U> we're in focus, when in reality we don't have a clue how we're approaching a subject. For instance: "I'm going to compose what I see" vs. "I'm going to see before I compose." Seeing and thinking before composing gives us time to find our focus.

And finally, our focus should transfer through our pictures, so the viewer knows exactly what our focus was.

Brian,

It's not the first time we felt similarly about something. :)


Kelly,

That is exactly what I'm talking about. If I was a pro athlete, I would call it "being in the zone."

Focus---is what my husband and I have to say to each other when we are eacjh talking about something so utterly boring to the other than in the bored person's brain we only hear the sound of Charlie Brown's teacher(WAWAW WAAA WAA WAWAW WAAA WAA)

photographically speaking--- focus is that thing I'm forever searching for tthat keeps me from cutting out limbs, including pertinent elements to represent a wole story, that passion for getting every element and freezing it as it is my brain--- and lastly focus is the thing that keeps me locked in on my goal of being a photographer even though my official title is stay at home mom...for now.

focus is the light at the end of my tunnel
;)

Good topic