Understanding Photography Genres, Styles, and Processes

Photography is a vast and expressive medium. This page organizes it through three simple ideas that help describe what a photograph is about, how it appears, and how it was made: genres, styles, and processes.

Together, these categories provide a framework for understanding both creative intent and the finished photograph.

Each Behind the Lens image is accompanied by a detailed image information card. Similar to EXIF data but expanded in scope, these cards provide additional information about the photograph, including its genre, style, process, technique, equipment, and other creative details.

Below you’ll find a growing collection of genres, styles, processes, and techniques featured throughout the site. Each links to articles where I share examples, techniques, practical information, and reflections on what makes that particular approach meaningful to me. 

These four ideas work together: 

• Genres describe what a photograph is about
• Styles describe how it appears and feels
• Processes describe how it was made (broad)
• Techniques describe how it was made (specific)

For simplicity, I group Processes and Techniques together. While they can be distinguished in theory, they often overlap in practice and are best understood as part of the same creative workflow.

Photographic Processes & Techniques

(how the photograph was made)

• Digital Composite
• Double Exposure
• Experimental & Alternative Processes
• Expired Film
• Hand-Colored Black & White Photography
• Infrared Photography
• Pinhole Photography
• Selective Focus

• Analog Capture
• Author Narrative
• Black & White Conversion
• Digital Capture
• Film
• Image + Text Pairing
• Long Exposure
• Motion Blur
• Pushed Film
• Stitching