I don’t normally write a post such as this, but I’ve seen a fair bit of ‘this’ lately so just felt the need to put pen to paper, so to speak.
I’m tired of seeing people tell others what they should or shouldn’t be doing with their photography and editing.
We see it all the time in comments and forums; people acting like there is a "correct" way to be creative.
It's tedious. It’s exhausting.
The escape is the point
Photography and editing are personal.
For loads of us, picking up a camera is a break from all the rules, deadlines and stress that come with modern life.
When someone sits down to create, that might be the only hour in their day where they actually feel in control of something. If they want to use a tool that makes things easier or more enjoyable, that's up to them.
The minute we start slapping "rules" on creativity, we turn what should be a release valve into just another chore; we make people second-guess themselves before they share their work, or even worse, they stop creating altogether because they're worried about being judged by the purists.
Use the tools you want
This goes for the tools we choose too.
If someone wants to use a particular bit of software or decides to use AI, so what? That's their choice.
If what someone else is doing has absolutely no impact on you, your life, or your own creativity, then why let it concern you?
As long as they're not trying to deceive people or claim credit for something they didn't actually do, let them get on with it, and even if someone does try to be deceptive, they'll get found out eventually. We'd probably do better spending our time keeping our own house in order before we start telling everyone else how to run theirs.
The elitism of the "right" way
Then you've got the phrases that always come up, like "getting it right in camera" or "we should all go back to basics."
Every time I see or hear this, it comes across as elitist. It feels like they're saying "I'm better than you."
Do the people who say this honestly think everyone else is deliberately trying to get things "wrong" in camera?
We all try to do our best at the point of capture, but for many people, that's just the start of the process.
And as for going back to basics, who are we to say that?
Just because one person finds joy in the traditional way of doing things doesn't mean everyone else has to. Why should someone else do what you reckon they should do?
Leave them be
Life's tough enough as it is. We're all different, and thank goodness for that; the world would be a boring place if we all worked the same way.
If someone's getting enjoyment out of what they're doing, leave them be. The world doesn't need more critics, it needs more people finding a way to enjoy themselves.
If their process made their day a bit better, they didn't break a rule, they won.