“There’s a difference between creatively shooting a subject that is cliche, and shooting an subject in a way that is cliche.”

That was meant as a response to the thread in general but, the way it was written, made it appear I was referring to you, alone. I was not.

Sorry,

There’s a difference between creatively shooting a subject that is cliche, and shooting an subject in a way that is cliche.

If we’re not happy with how others perceive our work, we have essentially two options. We can ignore their criticisms and continue to shoot in a way that makes us happy, or we can take such criticisms into account as we work and attempt to alter (improve?) our images to placate the critics. Both options are completely valid. Do whichever makes you happy. Caveat….there are very few of us who can ignore criticism in it’s entirety and wander happily along without second thought. Many claim they have that power, but most are just fooling themselves.

That said, there is a distinct benefit to the latter option. By taking into account the criticisms of others, we can gain valuable insights to counter the emotional attachments we often gift to our images. We remember the beauty and our emotional reaction at the time the shutter snapped, but those personal memories are rarely transmitted within the image.

So, if we’re tired of our images being labeled cliche and want to do something about it, we need to take such criticisms into account next time we’re out shooting and investigate non cliche ways to shoot otherwise cliche subjects.

So I just don’t get it when someone tells me that my sunset image is a cliche. It’s my image. It’s my interpretation of the event. It’s me who experienced the beauty of the sunset and who enjoyed its creation. I intend to keep creating these images, without a concern for how many more cliches I’m creating.

There’s no shame in revisiting old comforts and familiar experiences, just as there’s no shame in ordering Eggs Benedict every Sunday.

I would say, it is worthwhile getting to know it and experience it for yourself.

When I got there, I did the natural thing; I first shot the “cliche” view without really worrying about whether or not it was a cliche, and then I shot several of my own. Most of them ended up being failures, but for technical flaws — mainly exposure problems, because I was relatively inexperienced at shooting with film.

One of them, though it has a small compositional flaw in it (I snipped the curve of the leading line with the edge of the frame… and I didn’t catch that until I got the neg back from the lab), has gotten a lot of positive feedback from everyone who’s looked at it.

It has worked pretty well for me, though I also like hiking, so I get myself into locations that aren’t as well known.

Even if it’s a cliche, relax and let it be your take on that cliche

I agree somewhat with Andrew in this regard, but think he’s a bit too rigid. Photographs do need to be different or new to be meaningful, they just need to be honest, cliche or not.

As far as Andrew’s music analogy, Celine Dion took AC/DC’s “You Shook Me All Night Long” to “to a place it’s never been taken before”. That place was, in the opinion of many in the music industry, the worst cover song…..EVER! Why did she fail? She wasn’t true to the music. She put herself above the song. A mistake than many of us make when shooting photos.

So, cliche or not, if you’re true to yourself when shooting photos, you should not feel embarrassed or ashamed to publicly display your images. Just do not hope for, as Andrew so delicately put it, validation and recognition

A good rule that I heard on the radio about cover songs from a local radio host was, “If you’re going to play a cover song, you better take that song to a place it’s never been taken before.” I think that rule applies for photography as well. Once you get to a certain point, if you feel the need to take a cliched shot, you better take that shot to someplace it’s never been taken before. Add something new and original to it. Otherwise it’s probably just best to take the shot, bin it, and move on.