Following the Magic

I’m not an expert photographer. I’m not even a decent amateur. I’m just a girl who loves taking photos. Personally, I believe that any good shots I happen to capture occur merely because I was there at the right place, at the right time. (Or maybe it was because I took 15 photos to your one or two clicks of the shutter.) But no matter, it was just pure happenstance and running of the odds. Nothing more. I was ready, armed with my third eye and aimed at my target, and I got lucky.

For several years now, I’ve pondered pursuing photography more seriously. After all, I love it. It’s one of my favorite things to do. Wouldn’t it make sense to hone my craft and kick it up a notch? I’ve even considered taking a course or two, assisting with a real photographer on the side once again, or just reading and researching as much as I can on the subject. But something stops me – a part deep inside of me screams out “don’t do it.”

On the flip side, the perfectionist or over-achiever in me is pushing me to better my skills. Why do anything if you can’t do it right? If you have the chance to perform better with some training, why not take that next step to do so? Why settle for mediocrity (at best) rather than pursue brilliance?

I’m a passionate person. I rarely do anything half-heartedly. I’m a 110% girl. I’m consumed by my work, hobbies and activities. When I’m in, I’m all the way in, no-holds-barred. If I started pursuing photography like that, I’d be committed, dedicated and obsessed with it, even more than I am already as a novice.

And somehow, I fear that if I learned the “rules” or the “how-tos” of photography, the enchantment of this creative art would be replaced by someone else’s ideal. I’m afraid that I’d lose my love of the thing by over-pursuing another’s standard of it, and I don’t want to limit my scope based on someone else’s impression of what a good photo should be.

So call me crazy, but I think I’d rather continue to capture magic by mistake, for now.

DISCLAIMER: The author of the above article reserves the right to change her mind and reverse the decision made hereto at any time in the foreseeable future. She makes no apologies at the prospect of varying her opinions or disregarding her own solemn advice since she is subject to her own free will, the in-take of caffeine and the whims of an unfettered mind.