On photography, novelty, difficulty, and ego

I’m writing mostly about landscape art photography, though the idea applies more broadly. It applies less well to documentary photography and photojournalism, where success often depends on being in the right place at the right time. People sometimes ask me, “Among all the images you’ve made, which one’s your favorite.” “The last one,” is often my answer. Sure, it’s facile. But it captures a truth. I get really excited about my most recent images. That’s a good thing. It keeps me going. It’s also a trap. Growth requires some objectivity about one’s own work. That’s hard to do in the warm hazy glow of pride. What I do is try to enjoy the feeling, while having no trust that I’ll feel the same way in a day, a month, or a year. I’ll put the image up on a wall and live with it. Or, if it’s not part of a series I’m working on, I’ll put it in a drawer and not look at it until I can see it with clear eyes. There’s a related effect. I tend to like most the images that were the hardest for me…