The creative photographic image

Abstract

The author ha.s chosen to explore the po ss ibilit y that the creative talent exhibited by an artist's perceptive powers can be equalled effects. by the photographer through subtle use of special To this e nd the author has explo l'ed a pl'obiem encountered particularly in 1990's photography which has resulted ill a mass of high quality photographs taken by large numbers of amateurs world- wide, who are u si ng sophisticated moderrl camet's technology as a recording tool without achieving that element of creativity which captul'es DU I' attention and communicates with our inmost beings. The authol' ha s used his own photogl'aphic work and t.ha t of contempor"ary photogr'aphers in his field of s tudy, to su bstantiate the claim that thl'ough use of subtle special effects in a ,'ariety of topics, the photograph can be used a s imaginatively and c reative ly a s an i mage pI'oduced by a competent artist o r' painter. This observati.on could have important implication s for an industry which throug}l co mput er' tec}lnology PI'oposes t o go beyond the technical re strictions o f the painter whil s t main tai ning that p rofession's cl"eative flexibility. These spec ial effects should, i n the Buttlo r"s opinion be u sed not as an e nd to th e mselves, bu t as a mea n s o f transfol~ min g the of ten c linical med ium of pho tography into a creative tool li lni te d only by th e photographer's imaginative power's.