Favorite Type of Photography

Reflection on the diversity of photography

I often get asked, “What type of photography do you like best?”. I can never say one type of photography. Just like other aspects of life, I often don’t have favorites. (It could be that growing up, if I told my mother I had a favorite, she would overwhelm me with that. It was such a wonderful act from my mother who really put my sibling and my happiness at the top of her priorities.)

I struggle to have favorites because I love the diversity of life. It could be food, books, places, podcasts, movies, shows, and, of course, photography.

Here’s several explanations of some of the photography I like:

• Sports

  • Obviously, I love watching the talent and skill of the athletes and watching the result of many hours of training and practice. I love the passion of the athletes and also the fans.

  • Fundamentally, it is most important to capture the action of the sport. But it also allows for many opportunities for creativity. Outside sports often comes with different types of lighting.

  • To an outsider, sports can look chaotic. But more often than not, it’s completely organized. Athletes have their routines. Large sporting events are often planned to the second. I love seeing the logistics of sporting events.

  • There are many plays in sports, so the feedback loop of getting better is short and frequent.

  • Sports photography is fast-paced. So is the post-processing of the images. Because sports photos need to be timely, I find the process of getting photos quickly out exhilarating (depending on the client, photos need to be captioned).

• Music

  • Similar to sports, I love the passion for the craft.

  • As a less-than-amateur flute/piano/oboe/trombone player, I have a personal appreciation for musicians. I love how deeply musicians get into their music.

  • The lighting of musical performances is essential. It adds to the atmosphere and allows for creativity in photography.

• Landscapes

  • I love the slow pace of most landscape photography. I often use landscape photography to slow down life and help me reflect.

  • Researching places for sunrise/sunset/moonrise/moonset helps me familiarize myself with the places I will be visiting.

  • I love planning spots to photograph at various times. This may include hiking in the dark.

  • I love going to popular spots and seeing if I can do something different than others. Also, when the weather is not ideal, it often makes for better photos.

• Wildlife

  • I love trying to spot animals in the wild. If you haven’t gone out looking for birds, it will change how you see nature. I’m still very new at it and terrible at identifying animals.

  • Researching locations and what animals will be there for that time of year is fun.

  • I love the challenge of something I have almost no control over besides where to take the photos. Just going out there and seeing what you can get; it could be nothing or could be an amazing surprise.

• Family/Couples

  • I love love.

  • I have the opportunity to learn about people, their relationships, and their stories. This helps me be a better person.

  • I have seen many families grow over the years. It’s fun to catch up and reflect on how things have changed.

• Events

  • I have experienced many different types of events and met many people. Most of the events I would never have experienced without photography.

  • I love logistics and seeing the behind-the-scenes. I love photographing the people who make the event possible.

  • I love seeing the reactions of people at events.

The overarching themes are appreciation for life and inspiration from other people.