Over the years I've found that my photography looks better from a distance. Not a physical distance (print resolution is another interesting topic). I mean the distance of weeks, months and even years.
I shot manual film cameras for decades. Almost inevitably I would be disappointed when I got film back....whether after a long trip or just a day of local shooting. That image that I was certain would be amazing was almost always a letdown; never quite as dramatic or colorful as I had remembered. Occasionally this would work in reverse: a shot that I really hadn't thought much about would turn out to be a pleasant surprise. But it usually went the other way. Then gradually I discovered something: the shots tended to get 'better' with time.
I believe the reason is this: when you first see a slide or negative on a light table (or now, a jpeg on a computer screen) you are comparing it to your still vivid personal experience. And even a 4x5 Velvia slide probably isn't going to quite measure up. With time, however, memories begin to fade. And that's a good thing, because it allows you to see the image as an independent work of art. For me, this can literally take years.
A good example is this image of an evergreen in a Colorado aspen grove. This was taken with my old Pentax 645, which means that it is probably over 30 years old. I remember being disappointed when I first got the slides back, but I evidently thought enough of the shot to save it in a folder. (I keep fewer than 10% of my shots.) I think I had decided that the sky was too washed out and that the closest trees were ever so slightly out of focus. Then about a year ago I spotted this in my old 645 folder and decided to scan it. Now it is one of my favorite shots! And I believe that this is because enough time had finally passed that I could look at the image with fresh eyes, without comparing it with the actual experience.
Does this ever work in reverse? Absolutely! Over the years there have been a few images that I've been immediately enamored with....and printed and framed right away. And very often they disappoint with time as I realize that what I really love is not the photograph but an image in my memory. I have learned, therefore, to wait for at least a year or three before printing. Enough time that the image on the light table or computer screen can be viewed independently and without interference from physical memory.
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