I just blogged about something a talented art director always drilled into my head when we worked together. That got me thinking, and I remembered something else he insisted on, "Everything you DO to your photograph, do for a reason."
The first time he told me that was in response to my suggestion that we use a diffusion filter I had just purchased. He sighed and gave me the aforementioned advice. He explained it wasn't to quell creativity or spontaneity, it was to be sure the photographer was actually in control of all the elements at their disposal.
Doing something because it just looked pretty, or because you happened to like a color, or thought a shadow was cool just didn't cut it! For him, the photograph was a strong means of visual communication. He wouldn't hire a copywriter who used a certain word because it looked pretty, or chose a phrase just because they "liked" it, or threw in punctuation they thought was cool.
The images shown here are the result of some very conscious and considered choices; composition, camera angle, lens choice, exposure, post processing, and color balancing all were evaluated and executed with a singular result in mind.
Give it a try, make yourself justify what you do to your images. It will make them stronger, and it will be a big step towards cementing a "style" that makes your work more distinctive.
