Thought Leadership

Photos that are not pictures

As I have written about before, when I am not thinking about embedded systems, one of my main interests is photography. I have been taking pictures all my life, but, in recent years, I have started to think more about what I photograph and why I do it. I regard this as evidence of an emerging style…

I suppose it is possible to categorize images in various ways, for example:

Record shots that simply illustrate something or someone:

Images that tell some kind of story:

Pictures that are just nice to look at [i.e. have hang on the wall quality]:

Abstract pictures that do not clearly relate to any real thing – reflections or close-ups for example:

Images that are an exercise in shapes and/or textures, where the subject may be recognizable, but is unimportant or subsidiary; some examples:

It is this last category that particularly interests me. They can be aesthetically pleasing, but are they of value?

Colin Walls

I have over thirty years experience in the electronics industry, largely dedicated to embedded software. A frequent presenter at conferences and seminars and author of numerous technical articles and two books on embedded software, I am a member of the marketing team of the Mentor Graphics Embedded Systems Division, and am based in the UK. Away from work, I have a wide range of interests including photography and trying to point my two daughters in the right direction in life. Learn more about Colin, including his go-to karaoke song and the best parts of being British: http://go.mentor.com/3_acv

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This article first appeared on the Siemens Digital Industries Software blog at https://blogs.stage.sw.siemens.com/embedded-software/2017/11/30/photos-that-are-not-pictures/