Pixiq

In any photography classroom you go to they will teach you that aperture is the size of the opening in the lens when a picture is taken, and they will go from there to explain the relation between aperture and speed (let’s keep things at a basic level) to keep the exposure right. And then they will tell you that the aperture also controls depth of field, what means that you can get things more or less in focus depending on aperture. And also distance to the subject and the lens in use (yes, let’s assume that’s it).

Knowing all the things above is very important for you to hasten your photography apprenticeship, but we’re still in the mechanical aspect of things. Because, if you’ve the openness of mind to look beyond that, you will discover that aperture also has to do with a state of mind, and the decisions you make in order to make your photographs speak for you.

That’s something I try to teach at some of my workshops (some people just don’t want that, they want something else, faster) and that’s also the reason why I made the video you can watch on this page. It’s a long video, I know, but it was made purposely to check if you have enough patience to accept the challenge of seeing it until the end. Because if you don’t, then maybe this article and its concept are not for you.

What I try to say/write here is that you’ve to be in complete control of aperture (and inherently, speed) to do more than right exposures with your photography. And yes, having things in focus and out of focus too. That’s the easy part of it. But knowing when to not focus everything and going from there to tell a story it’s really what is important, if you want to find your own path in photography.

I know we do not see as a camera sees, so using extreme apertures to photograph something is going beyond anything we can see with our own eyes. But being unable to see, without glasses, much farther than my nose, I am blessed – yes, blessed, I can say – with the chance to see things two different ways: in focus, with glasses, and as a Van Gogh painting when I take them from my nose. A bit like what happens with a large aperture lens. When I discovered that, I began to be very much interested into exploring the same option with my lenses. And I try to do it either with my 50mm f/1.8 which I use again and again, but also, on he other extreme, with my 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6.

It’s not a rule, and you have to know by yourself when a f/16 (small aperture) is the right choice of when the f/4 of a normal modern zoom lens does the trick. Or the 50mm f/1.8 normal lens I always tell people they should buy to discover a new world in photography. But maybe it’s time to consider your aperture more than just a light gathering and/or focus/defocus control. It’s a means to express your feelings. Like I try to show in the last two frames of the slideshow on this page. None of the images is right or wrong, but you’ll agree with me; they convey different atmospheres from exactly the same point of view. All done with a simple change of aperture.

The video is part of my 5 day workshop on contemplative photography. It’s not a show of fantastic images but a collection of examples of different situations and the importance of choosing the right aperture, and also the importance of using selective focus to tell your message.

I try to build the whole workshops as a slow-down experience that tries to give people the basics to understand photography. And also discover a hidden part of themselves. In Portuguese the term aperture means the lens aperture but also openness of mind, so the title of the show has that double meaning.