Photography:

The Art of Seizing the Moment

Intuition and spontaneity should be 
objectives for all creatives.
– Steve Parish

I am often asked, ‘How many pictures did you take to get that one?’ Iconic images are rare and, in my case, are rarely the primary objective during a shoot. In most instances, they just happen and may not be recognised for their importance in a storytelling process immediately. In other cases, an image may have the power to speak in its own right from the get-go; no clarification is required. A cute koala or baby human giving eye contact with the viewer doesn’t need to be expanded on with words because an emotional response is global; we are hard-wired to respond to round faces with shiny eyes. Being a writer and photographer, and I am a bit of a control freak, I do like to control the narrative with titles and words. 

While viewer responses to these photo captures are often instinctive, others can only be expressed when the narrative is controlled with either post-production techniques, words, or both. These additional skills may have evolved from years of seeing, feeling, interpreting and expressing publicly under one’s belt. 

In equal importance, a serious visual communicator needs a steady flow of life experiences and sometimes painful investment in personal growth to enable spontaneous recognition of both the value of the content of an image. This also applies to how the work is publicly expressed, perhaps married to words, in a frame on a wall or designed onto the page of a magazine or book. It is, in my opinion, why photography is the single most popular pastime on planet earth, with the number of photos taken globally in 2020 estimated at 1.12 trillion. 

Following is an example of an image and its back story. Before you read on, re-evaluate the image of the horseman above, then read on…

IMAGE ABOVE – This is one of the most treasured images I’ve made over my five + decade career. It was taken at a fundraising horserace for the Royal Flying Doctor Service at William Creek in July 1984. this young Indigenous man from Oodnadatta, had been given a horse he’d never ridden, and he, along with a dozen other riders, lined up to the race. The racetrack had a sharp, elbow turn, but his horse decided that, no, it would go straight ahead, so he disappeared over many dunes before he finally turned his beast around. Fifteen minutes after all of the other riders had returned, in he came, exhibiting all the body language of a winner. Note that not a single face in the crowd had turned to cheer him in! This did not bother him one iota; he expressed the body language of a winner, believing in his heart that he had won! This brings to mind the adage, ‘If you think you can, you will; if you think you can’t, you won’t.’

Is a picture worth one thousand words?

In 1981, I was presented with a book contract to photograph the Great Dividing Range, from the tip of Cape York south to the Grampians in Victoria, a total of 3500 kilometres. The brief from my publisher was to ‘stop every few hundred kilometres and take a picture that spoke 1000 words’. In other words, capture an allusive, iconic picture in each locality!’ A great brief for a photographer!

When I drove into Coen, a small bush town in Cape York, I wanted to capture the profound interplay between the Cape’s Indigenous community and the white man’s cattle culture. There were few people out and about. It was a scorching day that perfectly illustrated the harshness of life there.

Beside me on the passenger seat was my trusty 600 mm lens, just waiting for that spontaneous opportunity. I hadn’t driven more than a kilometre before seeing two young boys idling on a wooden railing. One had bare feet; the other wore an oversized pair of riding boots with the letter ‘K’ carved into the leather. I found out that the ‘K’ was for Kevin, the current owner of the boots. I immediately realised I’d found my picture. Skinny black legs, riding boots, and the barbed-wire fence each juxtaposed to tell a story. At that moment, I knew it was an iconic picture that would forever represent the Cape and the historical link between these two cultures. It was 1982, and this image has remained one of a handful of what I consider iconic career captures after decades on the road.

To capture this picture, I needed to be in the moment with all senses alert and conditioned by an emotional connection to the pain carried by First Nation people across the Continent. I also needed to take spontaneous action and follow my intuition because Kevin moved his feet after a single frame, and the power of the picture was lost.

Focussing on the mechanics

The Mind’s Eye – To truly master photography, our cameras must become an extension of our imagination and ability to connect with the essence of each passing moment. Learning to act without premeditation, especially in situations where change is imminent, is a fascinating pathway to follow. Some photographers – particularly those in action sports, wildlife, street photography and especially war or conflict photography – have mastered this skill set and become famous worldwide in their specialities. And it isn’t just about action photography. Recognising the best angle of view or soft focus aperture setting behind a perching bird before you move in to make an image is also part of this process (see below). Seeing via the ‘mind’s eye’ – some call it pre-visualisation – also fits the concept of spontaneous photography. It is, without doubt, an essential element of photography.  

The Mechanics – In action photography, using a modern DSLR or mirrorless camera with automatic aperture, shutter speed, and focus capabilities makes taking advantage of a sudden or super-fast movement more accessible. In these circumstances, automatic camera capabilities are terrific, and I expand on these techniques in my blog post, ‘Bird Photography: Techniques & Tips‘.  

The manual operation has its advantages too. Slow, more considered photography enables you to manage creative variables like very selective focus – the sharpness and softness within an image, and exposure control – the lightness and darkness within an image.

Is it a Picture? – “Recognising a picture” is where your relationship with the world around you comes in. How observant are you? Do you intuitively see art and opportunity in your day-to-day life? A creative photographer continuously scans the world for colour, shade, light, and texture. Maybe the posture of a young woman engrossed in reading on busy Swanson Street, Melbourne, strikes you for a moment as you pass by. Or that very instant when a waterbird’s toes break the mirror-calm surface of a lake, creating an abstract pattern. In all cases, the practised photographer has heightened skills to help them seize the moment and consider aesthetic options: background, composition, exposure, and so on, all at once and in a fleeting moment. If this space is new to you, see it as an end goal. As your skills increase, these processes will become second nature. And when they do, wow, what a blast! You will, and I guarantee you this, start to see and feel your world and your place within it in breathtaking ways. 

Footnote: I cover this most important space in Module 3 of my Masterclass, ‘The Art of Seeing Art’, an aspect that I am most passionate about. Visit my Blog for an overview of this the most exciting aspects of the photography pathway.