ON TECHNIQUE

So I started experimenting with multiple exposure photography (MEP) a few months ago, probably out of creative boredom and probably, also, out of a willingness to insert that painterly aesthetic I love so much into my work hoping to raise its level of ‘seriousness’. I wanted not to take but to make pictures purposely, feeding them importance straight out of the lens and trying to so with great anticipation and great passion which all resulted in… many a tries, many a duds, one or two okay shots and not much else until I just stopped.

I just got tired. Or lazy. Or sidetracked by other projects. Or bogged down by the technicality of it all and wondering if this MEP stuff wasn’t, after all, a little too gimmicky for my taste, especially when recalling one key photographic veracity: expressive photography is not about technique; expressive photography is about intent and having something to say…

So I gave up on MEP, ICM and the likes, at least as practical intentional exercises, although I did manage to get a couple of moody monochrome shots with penciled textures which reminded me of sketches one may have found in old newspapers clips. And I like ‘em for they seemed to have this narrative power, the likes of which I find essential to meaningful photography, the likes of which could inspire a larger project around the city I live in… if, eventually, I get the lazy off me.