Brian Auer – Staggering Distinction in Photography
Welcome back!
Photography enthusiast Brian Auer’s distinctive style unifies architecture, urban landscape and nature to coalesce as one in a balance that manifests complex designs to emerge as a fabrication of seemingly simple beauty.
From San Diego, California, the modest and unassuming artist — although he doesn’t consider himself one — extends his passion for photography to share his knowledge, hints, tips and techniques with others at his Epic Edits site.
The engineer by day considers photography as a form of subjective art — “The photographer must decide how to balance the technical and artistic aspects of each photo being taken. In this form of art there’s no right or wrong, just different.”
“For me, photography is a means of expression; a way for me to express my artistic side through technology. I’m an engineer, and a very technical person, so I’m fascinated by the camera and all its technical aspects.” says Brian.
“Although I’m technical in nature, I’ve always had the need to express myself in non-technical ways. Photography just happens to be my perfect fit.”
Brian Auer’s 10 Commandments of Photography
The artist shares his “nuggets” of advice in no particular order:
1. ALWAYS Know Your Equipment — Know how to use your equipment, know what all the settings and options do, and know how they affect your photography. Be comfortable with your camera.
2. NEVER Try Too Hard — Have fun and learn as you go. The hard stuff will start to come naturally.
3. ALWAYS Break The Rules — Don’t be afraid to do it. Know the rules of photography well enough to know how to properly break them.
4. ALWAYS Rediscover Yourself — Don’t forget about your past photos. Go back through them, look at them in new ways, and make something of them.
5. ALWAYS Try New Things — Don’t hesitate to alter compositions while shooting. Use your equipment in a non-traditional way, explore the camera settings while shooting, and try new post processing techniques.
6. ALWAYS Mimic Those Who Inspire You — If you like an artist or a photo, figure out why. Apply that to your own work and mix it with other styles you’ve picked up.
7. NEVER Forget Your Roots — What got you into photography? If you’re ever lacking inspiration, go back to your roots. For me, it’s my kids.
8. ALWAYS Do It For Yourself — Don’t take pictures that you think other people will like. If you like them, that’s all that counts.
9. ALWAYS Keep Your Priorities Straight — Your camera gear is expensive. Your pictures are worth more than money. But your knowledge of photography is invaluable.
10. NEVER Stop Learning — I try to apply this philosophy to life in general. You’ll never cease to be amazed at the things you can learn. And my favorite saying “The more you learn, the less you know” is so dang true.
Brian Auer shares his perspectives …
Accomplishments of Mankind
“I’m always amazed at the things we (humans) are capable of. I think people forget how far we’ve come in the last 1000, 100, 10, and even 1 year. Our lives are filled with stuff that was invented and built by other humans — skyscrapers, bridges, machinery, vehicles, entire cities, and our cameras — all completely unnatural, yet so normal to us.”
“I find this artificial world to be so fascinating, and it inspires me to capture it in my images. The things we know today will disappear and change before the end of tomorrow. I look back at images of our creations from the past, and it helps to give me a better appreciation for what we have today. I hope that some of my images will do the same 50 years from now.”
Beauty of Nature
“The accomplishments of man are amazing, but nature’s beauty is unmatched. There’s something so pure and innocent about it. Nobody invented it, thought it up, or built it — it just is, it always has been, and it always will be. Sure, things change over time, but that doesn’t make it any less natural.”
Other Photographers
“If I’m not formally learning in a school system, I’m picking up things from people with a common interest. Photographers inspire me to try harder, try new things, and see things differently. I look though portfolios and galleries, making mental notes of the elements, compositions, post-processing, styles, and subjects that I like. I try to take those things and incorporate them into my own work — not for the sake of copying, but for growth and learning on my part.”
Challenge
“I get inspiration through challenge to set goals or restrictions on myself in such a way that I’ll have to get unconventional. I might go out for a shoot with just one lens on the camera, forcing myself to find new compositions that I might have otherwise overlooked. I might restrict myself to photograph things or scenes that contain one specific color or shape.”
His Kids
“My kids are the whole reason I started taking pictures and getting into digital photography. It’s such an enjoyable way to spend time photographing — especially when they aren’t paying attention to the camera and just acting like themselves.
Brian Auer has been practicing his passion for photography for about 4 years. Visit him at his site Epic Edits Weblog where he shares his experience in photography, and his print-sales gallery at Auer Photoworks.
Monsters out my Window Graffiti
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Wow Deborah! That’s quite an extensive write-up! I can see you spent some serious time on this — I’ll be sure to tell my readers about it. Thanks for doing this, it’s very much appreciated.
Wow! Those are some truly stunning photographs! They manage to put a new twist, even on landmarks we have seen 1000 times before. I wish I could take photos like that, but I’ll have to content myself with gazing dreamily at these!
Great pictures !!
Gorgeous, I love the Santa Monica image, very vibrant and the color of the sky is fantastic.
Happy to do it Brian, and glad you like it
Jessica, Tom and Jerad, as you can see, Brian is extremely talented. If you’re into photography yourselves, try checking out his site where he offers tons of advice on tips and techniques.
I love the street dancing shadow photo!
I’m not sure exactly which photo you’re referring to Joe, but glad you enjoyed it
Brian is highly talented, which is why I featured him.
really cool photos!
Hey!
hope you don’t mind. If you wanna see the results, visit: http://latbosse.bilddagboken.se/p/show.html?id=307358277&directlink=1
I just wanted to say that i think the “Graffiti up the Stairs” pic is really cool! I actually used it for a painting (school project)
As you see i added a few things and changed the letters to my name
Painted Desert Sunrays is my vote, beautiful negative space. Rays leading your eye to the subject.
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Brian’s quote about nature really caught my eye and thought of the quote above it about the artificial world (““The accomplishments of man are amazing, but nature’s beauty is unmatched. There’s something so pure and innocent about it. Nobody invented it, thought it up, or built it — it just is, it always has been, and it always will be. Sure, things change over time, but that doesn’t make it any less natural.”).
It made me think of the combination of the two and the photography here that catches the mixture of the two (both nature & nature used in architecture & design): lakeplacidlodge.com
The marriage of the two is both awe-inspiring and a call-back to the artisans who realize the potential and beauty.
Awesome stuff Brian. Incredibly rich and imagination-provoking.
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Very nice post! Industrial Sunset and Cigar Humor were a couple of my favorites.. But man, it’s hard to narrow it down!
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