Sigh... Another Waterfall Shot?

I found an interesting entry in another photographer's blog, who shall remain nameless, talking about how he loved photographing waterfalls, but didn't do it too much because he hadn't figured out a way to make money doing it.  It seems as though everyone has a camera, there are waterfalls everywhere, and people just don't want to buy a picture of something they see all the time.

The same can be said of so many photographs of nature in all its forms.  There's an almost uncountable number of people taking pictures and putting them on the Web and Facebook, resulting in such viewer saturation that there's no reason to buy them.  Why pay for a picture of Maroon Bells when you've seen a thousand views of it already?

It's an interesting problem for the professional photographer, and not many people have figured out how to get around it.  No matter what you're shooting, no matter how long you waited for the shot, how much time you spent in the lab processing, no matter what nifty technique you used, you'll find an almost identical shot done by someone else, and it might be done better.  Even if it's not as good, a professional knows that not many people can tell the difference, so it can still be a little deflating to see the sheer volume of like-minded people.

I didn't mention the photographer at the outset of this post, mostly because I didn't think his waterfall shot was all that great.  There wasn't really anything wrong with it; the colors were very nice, he had spent some time processing it to make it look very sunny and pleasant.  But it didn't speak to me at all.

Don't get me wrong, art is art if it speaks to someone.  But in trying to start that conversation, any artist must first come up with a conversation that's meaningful to them.  What I'm saying is, I would have deleted that picture, and tried to take another one that said something that was important to me.  Only then can an artist communicate with someone else, and only at that point will money be made.  If that particular photographer was thrilled with the shot he took, then more power to him.  But I want to speak to people who are driven by different things.

So I'll put my money where my mouth is.  Here's a picture I took of Bridalveil Falls in Yosemite earlier this year.

Bridalveil Falls, Yosemite

It speaks to me in a vintage, foreboding sort of way.  It reminds me of the Hudson River School of painting, and is all the more interesting to me because it wasn't taken at the lookout point.  It was taken at a spot where most people wouldn't even think to look up, much less try to frame a shot.  To me, that helps make it more unique, and the lighting makes it timeless as well.

I'm interested in whether or not this picture speaks to you as a viewer on some emotional level.  If it does, I'm willing to send you, absolutely free, a signed 8x10 print of this picture to hang in your home or office.  Drop me an email, and I'll get it right off in the mail to you.  I'll need your mailing address, obviously, so don't forget to include it.  But I'm also going to put you on my once-a-month mailing list, if you're not already on it.

Have fun with whatever art you enjoy!