When I used “expansive” as a term I try to use words that describe positive and negative space. I guess I see the world as expansive because nature (and the world) in and of itself is infinite. despite the fact we interpret a three-dimensional space onto a two-dimensional plane does not change our perception of it, rather the outcome. That is why photography falls short on so many levels. We share our photos with people and then say to them, “i wish you were there because it was amazing and this photo does no justice.” We cannot rationalize this two-dimensional space only save for trickery in photography such as HDR shots, which still look foreign as a terrestrial from the universe of space.
There are a lot of theory books out there that try to rationalize the human brain and the process of image, but more relating to the content and the meaning of that content. A photograph is just that, a photograph. a snapshot is just that, a snapshot. But where does the art begin? When the snapshot no longer communicate the average and begins to tell a story of something other than, beyond the discussion of a two-dimensional outcome.
What we are doing in this class is the nuts and bolts which will carry you to an understanding the technology which is simply a tool to rise above so that you can begin the work of accomplishing an exposure, to begin to tell those stories, and hopefully begin to make some art. This notion of “rules of third” is making you take a step back so that you can practice what the brain finds interesting, no matter what the content. Once you master this you can break these rules, but breaking the rules in understanding the dynamic nature of “space within the frame” and how that space can have hardly any content yet still compel the viewer. that is your ultimate goal.
