Are Your Photos Taken or Made?

                                    Behind the Gare Saint-Lazare, by Henri Cartier-Bresson.

“Photos are not taken, they are made...”

This statement is mostly attributed to Ansel Adams, though I think he simply was the first really famous photographer to say it. Ansel went on to elaborate: his approach to photography was to carefully plan and execute the way in which the images he captured would ultimately express his impression of the scene. Therein lies the controversy of this statement.

There are those who feel that photography should be as objective a representation of reality as possible. They feel that photos are indeed taken, not made, and that the skill of the photographer comes in using his tools and experience to capture the moment as accurately as possible, with as little work being done after capture as possible. Anything more than minimal processing needed to ensure a technically suitable final image is considered altering reality. And photography, unlike painting, is intended to represent raw reality as much as possible.

So, which is best? Is it to put a lot of work into making a photograph that represents the photographer's impression of the scene? Or is it to put effort into presenting a scene as realistically as possible? It would seem these creative ideologies are in opposition. They are actually just two sides of the same coin, and that coin is planning.

The photo at the top of this page is “Behind the Gare Saint-Lazare”, one of Henri Cartier-Bresson's most famous images. It is the essence of his “decisive moment” philosophy of photography, where the most important aspect of an image is that instant in time which tells a story like no other. I don't want to go into too much analysis of this amazing image (things such as the leaping figure on the poster in back which many people fail to notice). I want to point out that as spontaneous as this photo appears, HCB put a lot of planning into it. (some even argue that he staged it, repeatedly asking the man to make his leap until HCB captured the decisive moment.)

Henri Cartier-Bresson based much of his ability to get the decisive moment on careful planning. He would pick locations carefully, sometimes scouting in advance of the time of day when the lighting would be best for the photo he wanted to capture. He would watch what was happening, seeing how human activity might ebb and flow over the course of time. Then he would pick the right location, angle, time of day and activity he wanted to capture, then wait for the decisive moment. (And yes, luck did play a part in his success at times.)

I point this out because I've notice that many of the “photos must reflect reality” folks tend to cite HCB as an inspiration for that, yet think he just walked around with his camera hoping that great photos would materialize in front of him. He seldom did that. Great street photographers seldom leave any more to chance than they have to.

They observe. They explore. They watch for patterns in both the static elements and in human behavior. They wait patiently. They plan ahead so that they are anticipating rather than reacting.

Question: How often do you just grab your camera and head out hoping to encounter suitable subjects, and depend as much on luck as on skill to capture good images? Not that there is anything wrong with a “photo walk”. It's just that it's not always the best way to get the best images at times. Some photographers will even scout certain locations without a camera, just observing things and seeing how the light changes during the course of time and how people move through the scene. Then they come back at the right time of day to capture the images they are seeking. (That's where luck starts to come into play.)

Try it. Try just taking a walk, without camera, through a park or section of town, taking the time to see how the light is, studying the best locations to shoot from and the most interesting angles. Then come back when the light is going to combine with the subject to get the best results. Above all, be patient. You might even have to come back repeatedly before you get “The Shot”. The Decisive Moment image that you can take great pride in.

Sure, this doesn't always work with certain subjects and situations. But I wager that if you do this more often, you'll find yourself spending less time editing out photos you just don't like, and more time making photos you really like display worthy.