Photography is Like Making Spaghetti

Your hand squeezes each plump, red tomato attempting to find just the perfect texture. The bold, green color of bell pepper catches your eye next as you begin selecting the ingredients for a meal that's sure to please. Each item must be chosen with most careful scrutiny in order for your creation to become a masterpiece of culinary delight.  

But this is just the start.  

Anticipation grows on the drive home with your precious cargo. You eagerly await the preparation which comes next. You imagine yourself carefully peeling away the parts that aren't needed until just the very best remains. Each part must hold it's own for the final feast to please. The kitchen is filled with excitement as the aromas begin to tease.  

From all of your gathering of ingredients, preparation, and artful assembly a spaghetti dinner has been created! Friends and family can now enjoy a delicious, mouthwatering meal.  

So how in the world is photography like that?  

Rather than just tell you outright, permit me to share a little story and see if you can find a similarity.  

The park is filled with magnificent colors. The sweet scent of fragrant flowers is in the air. You can hear the shrill sound of the blue jay, off just a bit in the distance, near I expect to where the small but sparkling waterfall meets the pooling waters below.  

You know you have found the perfect spot to gather photos. The beautiful flower colors beg to be taken home. The unique textures on the rock wall and the shadows they form would be great to show your friends. If you're lucky, you'll catch a shot of the beautiful blue jay as he sweeps by in pursuit of his next meal. It's like being in paradise, again.  

I say again because at least once a week, I head out, camera in hand to gather the wonders of nature on film. It's a great chance to look for, enjoy, and appreciate all the magical things that surround us every day, but often go without notice in our hustle and bustle lives.  

I gather all the visual ingredients that will make for great photographs to share with friends and family later. But the process of creating great photographs just begins in the camera. There are so many ways to prepare them later, just as there are hundreds of ways to prepare tomatoes. One outcome may be quite different from another.

On my journey home from the park, I begin to imagine just how I will use my digital photo editing software, in my case Photoshop, to careful craft the final images. It is the equivalent of cutting the veggies to make a fine spaghetti sauce.  

Once "cut and washed" until sparkling clean and clear, the final image you will see nears completion. Perhaps I'll pick a nice frame just as you would settle your fine spaghetti into one of your best dishes for presentation.   You gather and you prepare, savoring each step as you go.  

That is exactly how photography is like making spaghetti. However there is one critical difference I should make you aware of. Photography will never put one pound on your body, no matter how often you partake. In fact it can actually cause you to lose weight!  

Spaghetti on the other hand?

Robert Schwarztrauber is an author, speaker and photographer who provides many online resources which help people lead healthier, wealthier lifestyles. For more information on changing your life for the better in these tough economic times, visit http://totalfitnessphotography.com

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