The Decisive Moment Pt. 1

Henri Cartier-Bresson said, "Aim well, shoot fast, and scram!", when referring to his style of shooting photographs. Much of his photography is about capturing a short instance in time. Even in his portrait photography, no matter how planned the subject's pose, there is an element of unexpectedness that occurs as if he was some sort lightning rod for random events. Considering the time it took to take a photograph back in those days---adjusting your tripod, adjusting the camera's bellows, releasing the shutter, changing your flash bulb, etc.---It may not have been just pure coincidence that Cartier-Bresson captures his images even though he says in the documentary "The Impassioned Eye" that some of the images he captured were captured by pure luck.

Shooting for me has always been very deliberate. I have always been very planned and meticulous about keeping a schedule for my shooting and I have always had a reason for doing a particular project other than getting a grade. I have never just sat and waited for something to happen. My current assignment, capturing a decisive moment in time, whether it be before, during or after a particular event, will challenge my patience. It's hard for me to do anything when I don't know what to expect much less try to produce a body of work.

I can tell already though that this class is going to be quite interesting. I'm looking forward to seeing what kinds of images I can produce when I relinquish any boundaries that I would normally set for myself while I am shooting.

Photos by Henri Cartier-Bresson and Breandan Tondu