I know that not everyone is as dedicated to photography as I am. But I am still convinced that even a modest amateur/beginner can benefit by keeping a practice log.

The way you get better at anything is to practice. This is well-known for things like playing a musical instrument or sports, or languages, etc. But I rarely heard it talked about in the photography realm and it should be.

(They want to know WHY you photograph…)

I’ve written about the WHY of things before. And most of my inspiration for those posts is from Simon Sinek’s book “Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action” (https://amzn.to/32pU0sr) It’s one of the most important books I’ve read in terms of moving both the financial and the creative side of my life.

Today I want to talk about the simplest application I can think of for Simon’s book.

All-star wedding photographer, Roberto Valenzuela says “Perfect Practice Makes Perfect” instead of the more common “Practice Makes Perfect.” I have thought a lot about that since I heard his talk at WPPI many years ago. As I grow older, I realize that there are times when I was “practicing” my photography but practicing the wrong things. Not everything you do with a camera in your hand will necessarily drive you to your end goal.

Today’s photo is designed to illustrate the value of using symmetry in your compositions.

It’s also a good illustration of repeating objects.

The subject is my Danelectro Longhorn bass guitar. The composition tightly frames only a small portion of the instrument. This particular guitar has a very unique shape.