I've read some of his notes on his entries. I'm amazed at the incredible amount of work and planning that goes into many of them. He's winning for a reason.
Thank you all for your kind words! Such a thread is very flattering, not sure what to say :-)
What surprises me the most, is that you seem to agree that I have a style. I can't deny the fact that I spend good amount of time on searching ideas and concepts, and preparing setups, but I never tried to create a style. My approach is very naive and newbish: most references say that your subject should be sharp, so I'm doing my best for it to be sharp, they say you should be creative, so I'm doing what I can in that regard, they say that eye is attracted by the light, so I'm using dark backgrounds to drive the eye to the subject, etc. I'm simply trying to follow these generic recipes, and I have no clue how I ended up having "a style"!
On the other hand, my newbish point of view really shows in some challenges, like the Fine Art one: it really reminds me that capturing emotions is not as simple as following a tutorial. This is why I love DPC: it rewards what you seem to do correctly, but at the same time, it really shows you your own limits, what you are bad at, and what you should really work on if you want to progress. So thank you all again, as in fact, you are all what makes DPC as it is.
What surprises me the most, is that you seem to agree that I have a style. I can't deny the fact that I spend good amount of time on searching ideas and concepts, and preparing setups, but I never tried to create a style.
I think many of us tend to develop a recognizable style after a time, even when we don't know it ourselves. I have picked your entries out of many challenges, even when they were not self portraits, by the appearance the lighting and PP gives to it. Some people are also getting good at picking out my own entries based on the style of PP. I didn't think I had any repetitive style, but I seem to have developed one that is frequently recognizable.
He is one of my favorites as well. The meticulous nature of his set ups are just amazing. But his camera work is flawless as well.
I think we should give a mention about his model/assistant/helper/apprentice/partner/wife because from reading his notes it is quite clear that she deserves some kudos also. You're a lucky guy gyaban, and maybe a little talented too. ;)
