Asher, Rod, Charlotte
Thanks for your kind comments.
Rod, I have no problem with photography being second to life! I very rarely stage anything. In fact except that I have an idea for a series that I would like to shoot sometime, I basically don't stage. In part it's probably my age, but I agree that we make far too much in the way of artificial imagery (I know this is an area where Asher is happy to go further than me
, for example I would not have considered reshooting Bob Sumitro's picture here
http://www.openphotographyforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8602) An interesting question that springs up now is what purpose would there be in stgaing innocence? In today's world we are so often subject to selling through images, even if not immediately obviously, that the idea staging innocence has a sense of unease about it.
Mike
Edited to say that this is not suggesting that staged work has less or no value, just that what interests me for pursuit at present is largely not staged. I enjoy looking at staged work as well!
Mike