Photography Art or Craft?
The question has often been brought up is Photography an Art or a Craft? To answer that you have to define what is an Art or a craft.
Most people would agree that a painter (scenic not house) is an Artist. Likewise a person that builds furniture is considered as a Craftsman. Using that as a reference point it could be said that an Artist creates something unique, whereas a Craftsman makes something that can be repeated again and again.
Based on that definition it would seem obvious that photography is a craft, but . . .it's not quite that simple. Give 5 photographers, the same camera, the same subject, and the same lighting and more often than not you will still get a variety of unique images. Therefore, photography must be an Art, right?
My personal opinion is that it is both a Craft and an Art. While many people learn the Craft (exposure, depth of field, shutter speeds, etc.) not everybody bothers to take it to the next level and learn the Art (Framing, Rule of Thirds, Leading Lines, etc.) I have great respect for both; but for those who argue it is one or the other, I believe they are not getting the whole picture.
Tedric Garrison
Webmaster of:
www.betterphototips.com
Most people would agree that a painter (scenic not house) is an Artist. Likewise a person that builds furniture is considered as a Craftsman. Using that as a reference point it could be said that an Artist creates something unique, whereas a Craftsman makes something that can be repeated again and again.
Based on that definition it would seem obvious that photography is a craft, but . . .it's not quite that simple. Give 5 photographers, the same camera, the same subject, and the same lighting and more often than not you will still get a variety of unique images. Therefore, photography must be an Art, right?
My personal opinion is that it is both a Craft and an Art. While many people learn the Craft (exposure, depth of field, shutter speeds, etc.) not everybody bothers to take it to the next level and learn the Art (Framing, Rule of Thirds, Leading Lines, etc.) I have great respect for both; but for those who argue it is one or the other, I believe they are not getting the whole picture.
Tedric Garrison
Webmaster of:
www.betterphototips.com
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Greg Maklae on -
Photography is both an art and a craft, and neither segment is more important than the other. I think the ability to compose a scene others would not visualize is the art portion, while processing the image is the craft, as you are using software created by others.
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Permalink Reply by Joy Franklin on -
I think of it more as an art and a science than a craft. You have to have the "eye" for it. Before I began playing around with photography I sincerely believed that you could give anyone a great camera and they could take great pictures. I no longer believe this. I think you can have a good eye and get great compositions with any camera but when you move beyond that and begin to learn the technology and science involved in shooting and editing. I do fall strongly on the side of Art.
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