Why do you take photos and what do you do with them?

[timmyb]

I was thinking about this earlier and thought it would be interesting to hear the views of others.

I imagine there are some here who do it professionally, some are doing so for a course but other than that what is your motive and what do you do with them?

Personally I take photos for the enjoyment of taking the shot and a sort of record of what I've been doing - I guess these are the reasons for most! I like to put some of my photos on Facebook to share with friends, (these tend to be ones of social occasions when I happen to have my PnS with me and pull it out,) and I get some printed out in standard size, (though well under 1% of my library.) Occasionally I'll browse through old photos in iPhoto but I don't do this that often. I think I'm going to begin to print more out and might even get a big photo album to fill up with carefully selected shots, (both of artistic and personal merit!)

Anyway, how about everybody else?

 

[LittleCanonKid]

This is actually an interesting topic, and it got me thinking. Props for that.

Photography, which I've only started relatively recently (compared to most of you, at least) is really all about fun for me. I don't really have some deep, philosophical behind taking photos for me. With the exception of taking photos for memory's sake, the photo-taking process is fun and when the results are great, it feels really satisfying. Sharing it with friends is also fun, especially when they're into photography as well.

For example, light painting. As tiresome as it may be for some, I found it pretty fun to be running around the backyard when it was pitch black with a couple of flashlights. Some of the photos came out really well, and it was worth braving the bugs for.

As for printing, I've got some 12x18s up on the wall. It's really nice to just stand back and look at your work, as conceited as it sounds (but it's not meant to be), you know what I'm saying?

 

[Phrasikleia]

Professional needs pushed my photography to a new level of activity and demanded that I achieve better quality (which meant investing in better equipment), and those developments in turn further piqued my interest in photography as a form of personal expression. So I now take pictures for both reasons. I'm amassing an archive of photographs for teaching and academic publication, but I'm also making time and taking every opportunity to make photography an outlet for my own creative exploration.

As for what I do with my photos: I print them, I project them, I share them via email or online galleries, and I subject them to scrutiny on the MacRumors daily photo thread and weekly contests!