Style
Style is an interesting concept. My brother once asked me “Hudson, what is style?”
I thought about it for a bit, and it is funny to address one of those things that you feel like you are so clearly familiar with, but also have never consciously defined that thing. What is style? After some time gathering my thoughts, I had found an answer.
I told him that style is the uniqueness in which one does anything.
Style is how you dress, it’s how you walk, it’s how you speak, and it’s how you do anything. I mean ANYTHING anything. No matter what you do, you do it uniquely. That idea became more interesting to me the more I thought about it. It’s not just the basic appearance aspect of how you look, but truly the personal nature of all your actions., There is no other person on earth who does what you do in the same fashion that you do it. How you go about eating an ice cream cone, no one does exactly like you. Licking left to right, right to left, biting the scoop, cone first, letting it melt all over your hand because you think you look weird while you eat it, and all the other options.
Isn’t that interesting? That same idea applies to how you do all that you do, no matter your skill in it. Drawing, thinking, cooking, exercising, and on and on. Don’t you think that maybe… just MAYBE.. the development of that style into something that people admire is related to your dedication to that style? I believe that the sooner one comes to terms with the way they do something and foster that uniqueness, the sooner they can create something great and unlike anything anyone’s done before. And the first step to doing just that is confidence.
It’s difficult being confident. Some people just seem to be more at ease in what they do than yourself, and you can wonder why? Is it because they’re better at that thing? Is it cause they’re better looking? Is it cause they have better clothes? I think that you think they’re better, or that they look better, or that they dress better because they think they dress better.
Let’s bring this back to photography.
If you take pictures, embrace what you do that is unlike what others do. It’s not bad to take inspiration from others to learn and develop your skill, but it is bad to reject what makes your work your work. Find the beauty in the one and only style that is yours and no one else’s, and then grow it. Practice it, master it, and then you’ve got something on your hands that no one else can create.
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This blog post was a sort of stream of consciousness, hopefully it has some value to you, whether you are a photography-lover or photography-hater. I think the words are applicable to every aspect of one’s life, and so maybe try finding a way to implement it! Thanks for reading everyone, another blog post coming soon.
