When not using any of these techniques, I developed negative film on the same day it was shot and made contact sheets to get some idea of what I had just done. There are many psychological studies that point to the importance of feedback in learning. People who aimed bullets at a target, but were not told where the bullets hit until later, could not learn quickly. However, those who were told immediately improved rapidly. While this seems obvious, it is often forgotten.
Digital photography allows an artist to learn quickly in new situations.
For example, I took pictures at a fall carnival and wanted to get a sense of movement with blurred images. When the pictures did not turn out as I hoped, I started to move the camera in relation to the ferris wheel. In less that one hour I went from traditional night shots to some of the most unusual pictures I have ever taken. The immediate feedback was crucial. There are many, many ways to experiment.