Are cliché photographs classic like one of Shakespeare’s plays or are they annoying? Elements from Shakespeare’s work show up in many movies and books. It can be said that William Shakespeare’s themes pop up in photography. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but a picture of a rose would not be that unique. Sunsets, doors, babies galore, that which is popular do you adore?
In photography, like any other art field, original ideas can be hard to come by. Often times newbies like myself tend to take pictures of what is popular and easily available. Trees, doors, and fruit are fairly easy to come across and photograph. I really have no problem with cliche photographs, though I try to avoid them myself. A lot of beautiful pictures are of things that have been used thousands of times. I have taken quite a few photographs of old worn out themes as I am sure you have too. I even have the dreaded photographer picture; the self portrait where the photographer is shown taking a picture in a mirror.
One is not going to get popular shooting pictures that people have seen thousands of times. However, to some, reused ideas and themes are classic, and therefore “allowed” to be used over and over. Shakespeare’s themes are used quite a bit (in writing and art)and no one seems to mind the cliché of the stories. So I ask you: are cliché photographs classic, or do they make the photographer lazy?
9 Comments
If it looks good, then it doesn’t matter where or how it was taken—as long as it is original and unique.
I still prefer seeing stuff I haven’t seen before though.
Getting a “cliche” right can be good practice. I found last time I did the picture a day challenge I was coming up with all sorts of cliches out of desperation, but each taught me something. One tip is to be aware what you are doing is a cliche and try to find some way to make it fresh.
Having said that, I can never have too many sentimental cliches in my collection as it is not the pic itself but the memory that is important in those cases.
Photography is not always art, or commerce, sometimes it’s all about the pleasure. I forgot that once and it ruined my treasured hobby for a while
One of the main goals of a good photograph is to tell a story. I think that if a photo feels “cliche” then it’s not telling it’s own story. I agree with Chris, make the cliche fresh. I think that’s why I’m so into Lomography at the moment, it’s almost like seeing bad film photography makes everything feel fresh and new because we’re so used to seeing crisp, pretty images.
At the end of the day, though, if it’s not fun, it’s not worth doing!
What the two above said. Also, there’s nothing wrong with trying to find a new take on an old idea. Look at that rose and shoot it in a way you’ve never shot it before. The result may not be spectacular, but I can pretty much guarantee you’ll learn something from the experience. And what’s wrong with that?
Alex Waterhouse-Hayward has a line about this, it goes something like “I realized that although thousands of people have taken a photograph of this, _I_ haven’t taken one yet.” (or something like that).
I’ve got _no_ problem shooting cliche shots. They’re cliche because they resonate on some level – sunsets, sunrises, babies, etc… are all happy things. Avoiding shooting them because they are cliche is a loss.
I shoot to explore and experiment – what will the lighting look like? what will this look like photographed? etc… and to bend time and space. Cliches don’t really matter if you’re having fun.
I guess it comes down to who you are shooting for. If you’re shooting primarily for others, for publishing, for clients, then cliches might be bad. I primarily (almost exclusively) shoot just for myself, to have fun. So there are no rules of what is cliche or not, or what I can shoot or should avoid
Personally, I feel cliche photos are a good exercise for newer photographers. It gives them the opportunity to practice the basics, composition,, exposure, etc on a safe subject where there will be sure to be many examples elsewhere of a well executed prototype. Indeed, one’s technical skill as a photographer can sometimes be put to the test when trying to mimic a cliche photograph. Every established photographer should have an obligatory saturated picture of a brightly colored door or window in thier reportiore.
-roland
@ James–I like original and unique
lol sometimes though I think I’m better at telling them than showing them.
Its always fun to learn something new 
and nothing is wrong with experimenting with the known 
actually the reason I was thinking about cliches 
I pretty much lean towards what he says, I was just wondering on other’s thoughts 
@ Chris Garrett–I tried doing a photo a day and failed miserably after three days… all of the pictures were cliches too lol
@ Chris Bergman–I like telling stories
@ Julie–
@ D’Arcy Norman–I love that quote
@Roland Rodriguez–lol I’ll have to remember to have a cliche picture in portfolio
I agree there’s nothing wrong with cliche shots. I like taking them because then I’ve taken them!
If I like something I’ll take it, as long as I enjoy it, get satisfaction from taking the shot, am proud of what I’ve achieved and most importantly had fun, then I don’t mind what I take.
Only a small list of requirements!
@Mandy–Thanks for the comment
and it is always best to be happy of what you have achieved, as I try to strive for every time I take pictures 