Shutter to think?

I shutter to think.

For years much of my shooting has been incidental. Variously described as "run and gun", "grab and go", and "shoot now, ask later"; the camera was there, I was there, and the subject was there. This half-assed approach to photography has yielded many wonderful photographs and resulted in more than a few sales.

While this style, incidental photography, remains an important part of my repertoire, a sea change occurred in the past few years when I began to get more serious about this part of my artistic output. Now, at least some of the time, I think when I shoot.

This contemplation is not limited to the mechanical and technological aspects of "making" the photography...camera and lighting equipment, settings, post-production in Lightroom and Photoshop...but extends well beyond. I'm thinking about WHY I'm shooting what I'm shooting; why I'm shooting it the way that I am; how I'll catalogue it when it's ready; what I'll do with it (i.e. how I can monetize it); and how I can market it. 

As a corollary to the new philosophy (the new ME), I'm thinking about shots I want before I even pick up the camera. I keep a list of shots to take and ideas to explore. I look BEFORE I leap--no longer content to happen upon a scene or event and then record it.

My photography is helping me slow down and think. I photograph--shutter--to think.

Carlo Balistrieri Photography is HERE!

I've hinted, suggested, threatened to take picture making to the next level...and finally have done it. 

At last it's here...CarloBalistrieri.com. After a long gestation period, the website...and this blog, are LIVE. For the moment the galleries are a bit on the skinny side. The big D2x, Photoshop, and Lightroom are all learning curves and the thousands of slides waiting to get scanned have one of their own. Stay tuned as the number climbs. 

The website is a vehicle to show you what I do with a camera. The galleries, "You" (people, events, food, travel...) and "Your World" (Garden/Flower, Wildlife, Texture and Pattern, Color, Macro) will showcase photography from the various disciplines I engage in professionally.

This blog is a place to talk about it. After all, the next best thing to making photographs is chatting about them, sharing experience and learning from the experience of others.

Join me in the quest. It just keeps getting better...