If no one would ever see your work would you still shoot?

Darwin's post yesterday - Thick Skin got me thinking. If for some reason no one would EVER see any of my photos would I still enjoy photography?

I think I would for a couple reasons. One, photography forces me to be at at some of the world's most beautiful spots at the time of day when they are at their best - like at sunrise when the first rays of the sun light up the land and the fog or mist still linger. And as a bonus I have this place all to myself.

Second, I like to print and hang my favorite photos on my walls at home. Every time I walk past them, I am reminded of that day. And how great that day was.

What about you? Would you still shoot if no one would ever see your work?

Tom,

This is easy for me to answer. I would. When I was younger I spent all my spare time afield oftentimes bowhunting. Somehow I lost the desire to hunt as I got older and the photography replaces that for me. I need that bit of motivation of being after something to get out there, but once there, it is the being there that really matters. I hope that makes some kind of sense.

Peter

Definitely, it's the process of photography that matters most. For me it's a spiritual thing.

Tom,
Since I started in to photography I have been more places more often. I take my family and share together with them the jewels of nature.

My nine-year-old son goes with me trudging through the marsh chasing birds, to the mountains chasing elk or sitting on the edge of the bay taking pictures of eagles. He carries my old camera with a Sigma 500mm lens, which he manually focuses and often comes back with better birds-in-flight pictures than I do.

Photography is the best stress reliever I have found even when I blow the once-in-a-lifetime shot.
I often look back through my out-of-focus or blown out photos and think "What a day!"
I have learned more animal behavior from taking pictures than I ever knew before I started taking pictures.

When I started into photography I never had it in mind to share, though that now that I have amassed a great collection the desire to share is a natural outcome.

It is nice to have someone appreciate your passion, and there is no greater compliment than to have someone want to pay for it. But would I shoot if no one saw it? Absolutely!
Dave

Of course. How could I not?

No one sees most of what I shoot off the job. Doesn't stop me from shooting it!!! In fact, lack of audience gives me lots of needed freedom to experiment and break every rule in sight. Kind of a nice break from trying to please other folks or make money.

I shoot for myself. I don't print many.

A friend got me to print a book of the years best just to have hard copy in case the computer goes kaflooey.

I was into photography in my 20's. Family obligations (like making money and paying bills) was an impediment.

I turn 70 this year. I'm not sure how many years I have left but, I am really enjoying them trying to learn the digital format and chasing them damned birds!!

You know why the undertaker won't put pockets in your coffin?? Cause you can't take it with you!!

Without a doubt I would. Being somewhat new to photography on a serious level I have discovered pleasures that I did not expect when beginning.

1. Simply being in nature has brought a new higher level of consciousness to me about the world I live in.
2. I believe it is of great important that a person learn and understand all that is right, wrong, beautiful and ugly in the world they live in.
3. I will always be able to look at the photographs I have taken remember that time in my life.
4. It gives me goals and direction that have proven to be very beneficial to me.

Last and certain not least and maybe the most important, I have fun doing it, and enjoying the results of what I have done.

Wonderful question Tom. Makes me really think about why I do what I do.

Brad

I would, this is an intrinsic motivation. Like running or biking - I could not care less if someone sees me doing it
I started because I just had an urge to create something. It is the process of creation and the satisfaction I get from it. Sharing this with like minded people is great and a big part of it, but not decisive. Getting comments from friends who think that a big lens makes good pictures is also nice.
I don't sell my images, nor do I plan to get into that business for the time being, so yes I just do it because I want to do it and I want to get as good at it as I can given time and energy contraints imposed by work and further obligations.

Yes, I would still shoot even if no one ever saw my work, but along that same vein I would still be out there if I couldn't use my camera.

I never feel happier or more peaceful than when I am outdoors immersed in nature.

Very few people ever see what I shoot...and most of them don't care much unless I've done something for them. So, I'd have to say that yes, I'd still be photographing even if no one sees it - since they aren't seeing it now.

absolutely. period.

Yes I would still photograph things that interest me. It is nice when others admire your work and even like it enough to buy some. However, I still do photography for me. It is a way for me to be creative and as was mentioned above to remind me of good times in nature. Sharing is the icing on the cake, but the real cake is the entire process from studying a subject, being in nature and executing the image.

I'm in the minority here, but I don't know...honestly, I don't think I would.

If there was no one else around to listen, would you still talk? Communicating and sharing my experiences in the outdoors is what's important to me. If I could do neither, I would be content to further immerse myself in the experience without the burden of photography equipment.

Absolutely! Photography is great just as it's own reward, not to mention the creative release and a great form of therapy! Every time I go back and look at old images, it's just like reliving the experience.

Interesting question. There have b een times when life has had me in a full-court press and the world would melt away looking through the lens at a great piece of nature. Life is a little easier now and sometimes I just like to to go out and watch things with no need to bring something back, whether it's some wild game or a photograph. And it sure is nice to hike lightly without a bunch of camera gear. A lot of my motivation now is from showing folks who don't get out much a few threads of beauty.

If I wasn't able to show others my work, I don't think I would quit. But would probably cut back alot.

Probably not. A part of photographing for me is the process of showing something to other people. You may call it some sort of communication too.

Yes, I would. I photograph for myself as a creative expresion. The reason I take a shot in the first place is to try and capture the essence of a moment in time. To me, the journey of learning and developing my creative "eye' is not dependant upon someone else seeing my attemps at progress. I hope that for me the journey will always continue and I will never reach the point where I think that I have finally "arrived". Most of what I shoot will never be seen except by me or my family anyway. (probably a good thing!)

To answer your question directly, I wouldn't shoot nearly as much but I'd still shoot.

I loved spending hours and hours simply watching and occasionally interacting with nature from a young age, so for me photography is not a way to get me to do that more, but is a means of expressing that love. I'd still do it because I'd want some of my own visions on my own walls.

But I'd do it less.

A big resounding, HELL YEAH!! Like others before me, I have learned to be more observant of the world around me and I believe carrying a camera has heightened my senses. I've hunted, fished, hiked and boated my whole life and I would see animal actions but never chronicled them. I start carrying a camera also, and all of the sudden, there are more animals, plants and sunsets than I saw in all the years prior. A large percentage are FAR from perfect, but I can look at them anytime I want and be transported back to that special moment. The photo may be out of focus, but my memories do something PhotoShop can't do, and that is worth every mosquitoe bite or bee sting. Bruce

Yes. Certainly. I can even nearly prove it.

For the past 12 years, my wife and I have devoted essentially every vacation, nearly every long weekend and a lot of summer evenings to birding. We don't play the life list game. We do it for the sheer pleasure of seeing and appreciating the birds. For me, the last three years of photography are much the same. I do it because I love it.

Actually, it is a good thing people don't see most of what I shoot.

Seriously, for a long time, nobody saw what I shot. I was happy with that. Now, with running the photography as a part-time business, I'd probably shoot less. But I'd still be out there.

Awww... Dan beat me to it.

I don't think my shooting habits would change at all. It's an outlet for creative energy, a rewarding way to have a more intimate, personal interaction with nature, and it's cathartic. Being able to share the end product is simply a bonus.

Tom,

Good evening. This is a very good question, but for me the answer does not require any thought, absolutely yes.

Probably no one will ever see 99% of my photos. Other then the few I post on web sites and the ones I have as a screen saver or printed and displayed in my apartment or office, no one will see them.

I take pictures for me because I like too. Of course it is great when someone praises my work, but if they didn’t, it would not faze me. I take pictures for personal reward, nothing more, and nothing less.

Richard Bernabe said “If there was no one else around to listen, would you still talk?” Rich, yes I would because # 1 no one listens to me anyway & # 2 I always talk to myself .

Rich Hahn

YES.

You betcha! For me, it is about two things in particular. 1.) Getting out there in beautiful places I have not seen before. 2.) The print... the camera is just a conveyance for the emotion, energy and vision I felt when I clicked the sutter and registered that split second on film or pixels. The print is the final expression and release of that energy. To se it transformed on fine paper and inks is its own reward.
John

Definitely, I love to hike and packback and photography enables me to create memories of the places I've experienced. I print favorites, not necessarily the best, but the ones that evoke the best memories of the trip, and hang them on my walls.

YES, without a doubt. Being able to share with others just adds to the hobby.

Kind of a tricky question to answer because I've been posting my images online since I first picked up a camera. I'd probably just do snapshots if I couldn't show my work to others, but not spend as much time trying to get good stuff.

Exactly what Dan Borzynski said. I did some shooting before there was any thought of it being seen by others and I'm sure I'd continue to do some if there was no thought of it happening in the future. But I suspect I'd do a whole lot less of it--just to be less encumbered by gear--and, as Richard Wong noted, it would probably be of the snapshot variety.

The click of the shutter captures the memory. Looking at photos from my childhood, I remember the moment and the surroundings and surrounding events far more vividly and completely than I do with other memories of the era. For me, at least, the taking of photos is a way to remember and relive being alive...What more can there be?!

Yes, I would. No question about it. I'd only stop if I couldn't see the photographs myself...

Probably not. For me there are definitely social overtones to the creative process. I find that photographing with other people, sharing the pictures, and discussing different aspects of the art form are important elements for me. If photography were strictly solitary, I think I would prefer to look at other creative processes that would spur more social encounters. Flying solo, especially for long periods of time, rarely makes us happy.

Definitely. Although I like my work to be seen, I photograph for myself primarily. Some of the most thrilling and awesome experiences have been being out there shooting amazing light and landscapes. It's a high for sure.

Without question...period.

Yes I would, not many see my stuff now (except for what I post here). I have heard of photographers going out with no film/flash card in their cameras and shooting - don't think I would go that far but I have pondered the idea.