I get to enjoy my photography four different ways. The first is when I frame up each scene. This is when I’m creating the image. This is when the magic happens…or doesn’t. And, especially with wildlife, even if I don’t get the shot, I enjoy the scene – the story developing through my viewfinder. Even if I don’t take any winning shoots home, I still get to enjoy the experience.
The second part of enjoying photography is when I get home and select and then process the best images. This is where I often see details I didn’t initially notice. This is where I get to take an otherwise bland photograph and turn it into the harmony of color and lighting that saw in the original scene.
The third reward is when I print some of my favorite shots. Images always look better on paper than on the screen, especially when printed around 12″.
The fourth reward is when I pick the best of the best and print them and then frame them and hang them in my house. It lets me enjoy the photos indefinitely and remember the experiences of shooting them in the first place.
So I will tell all my fellow photographers again – print your images!