I bow to.....

no one. Really. I guess I'm happy with my pics and happy to see and appreciate others.


But while reading another thread, a spin off question came to mind:

What makes one a good photographer in this digital world? Nick made some statements like this person "pushes' himself'. But how so? With a decent camera and some editing software, all you have to do is take a photo and edit the **** out of it to make is so clear that its crispy. Is that what makes a great photographer?

Access to airports is irrelevant since many awesome shots are off airport grounds.

Nick also made a great point that anet started from a hobby of 50 mm side on shots and went from there. So there is an obvious bias toward a very regimented way of taking photos for their site. Or course this leaves many other great photos off the table for others to enjoy.

So what exactly makes one a great photographer to receive such praise, since you have to take the shot and edit it to Anets defined parameter?

In a different way of looking at Randall's great shot....was it a lucky capture and edited to Anet's standard? And is that luck what made it great? Or just Randall's consistent crispness, which is a function of taking a photo and spending a few minutes editing it?

I have to admit that I am spent from the other thread and not really into this topic anymore suffice to say that Randall was in the right place at the right time and got a perfect capture of a very rare occurence which is mostly why that shot was so popular. As for editing, a good capture like that requires little to no editing skill and a simple level, crop and USM does the trick. Which is also why I called out Jeremy for alluding that you have to be a pro at PS and do heavy editing on shots to get accepted at anet. It's bull, most shots I do take 3 to 4 mins to edit. I will now bow out of this topic for awhile as my head is also spinning from seeing the infamous moon shot from SXM. Everyone have a nice night!

I agree with Nick about Randall's shot, he was in the right place, at the right time, and has the skills to make a great opportunity like that go the extra mile. It was an excellent shot caught by someone who knows what they're doing.

I continue to disagree with your attempts to put words into my mouth that were never there though Nick, but I'm spent too and think it's time to agree to disagree and move on.

The moon shot was excellent.

I went through this same struggle with Joe Pries' work back in the day. But I'll tell you what; it was his excellence that made me force myself to forget about trying to be him and just have fun in the parking lot at Costco, then drive the 5minutes home to have a sandwich while my film got developed. To see my shots of Concorde, or the one (and only) time I caught a 707, was triumph enough to me. Before digital came along, I was actually a happier photographer. But I'm working on that.

So did I make anyone stop caring so much about Anet? You're welcome. :cool:

What makes a great photographer...........it's not the camera or lens, but it's all about being in the right place at the right time..........capturing that moment or event, something atypical from the rest, etc. Perserving that moment in time......... Just my 2 1/2 cents for what's it worth.