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Before Capture

It is helpful to give some thought to what you want to photograph before going out to do so. Both physical and mental planning are important when preparing to photograph.

Physical Preparation: Besides preparing the needed equipment such as cameras, lenses, filters, and the like, thought must be given to what you intend to photograph: nonaction (landscapes, flowers, portraits, antique cars) or action (sports, kids at play, motion). For example, in photographing a person, many a fine portrait has been diminished because the person to be photographed got bored waiting for the photographer to get ready, which includes such things as selecting the background, type of lighting, camera lens, and filter. All preparation should be taken care of before the person is positioned to ensure the desired result. The first few seconds of a portrait session are golden. Relax your subject. Some photographers play music in the background to help relax the person.

Rick Sammon, author of many books on photography, has his own method for relaxing people before photographing them. He spends time with them before photographing, engaging them in conversation, telling jokes, and performing some magic tricks to entertain. It has worked well for him.

When Vicki Wilson decided to do a Vermeer-like photograph (subject bathed in soft window light), she planned well ahead by first reviewing the many Vermeer paintings on the Internet. She and Missy discussed the location, props, wardrobe, and what Missy would be doing (implied action) while being photographed. (See page 197) A two-hour block of time was reserved for completing the assignment.

When photographing a landscape, time of day becomes important, because it will determine the direction and quality of light available (bright sun, cloudy, hazy). Realize that even with planning, atmospheric conditions might change. Don’t overlook the opportunity to capture the unexpected. It is amazing how photographing in a mist or during and after a rain can add mood and substance to the image. When Ansel Adams photographed landscapes, he always attended to the sky to make sure no birds were in flight, as they would be recorded as white specs of dust on the negative and black specs on the print.

Roy Stryker, who headed up the important photographic operation of the Farm Security Administration (FSA) in 1939, would make specific assignments for his photographers. In his “General Notes for Pictures Needed for Files” he would list such things as small towns, signs, farms, industry, people, and so on. Photographers such as Dorothea Lange, Russell Lee, Walker Evans, Gordon Parks, and others would carry out their assignments but would also keep an eye open for unassigned opportunities.

Figure 1.1. Bhutan Monks and Rick Sammon by Susan Sammon.

There are times, however, when it is fun and most enjoyable and relaxing to just go out to a new location and photograph whatever interests you at the moment and then study it later. Although new locations can be stimulating so can familiar ones. Some years back, when Bea Nettles was teaching at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) while pregnant, she was not able to do any traveling. She decided to stay around the house and take photographs of her flowers and other things—with great success.

Mental Preparation: In addition to physical preparation, some photographers spend time getting into the right frame of mind before setting out to photograph. Edward Weston, for example, spent time listening to the music of Bach. He attests to this in his diaries (edited by Nancy Newhall). He mentions that when he hears Bach, he is deeply moved and feels his influence. Music and photography were closely linked for Weston, as they were for other photographers—some of whom happened also to be musicians, such as Ansel Adams, Paul Caponigro, Carl Chiarenza, and George DeWolfe. Weston’s remark that when he hears Bach in his photo he knows that he has succeeded, suggests that he may have had a synesthetic (the ability of one sense to trigger another) experience.

A PBS program on “Music and Science” broadcast in June 2009 pointed out how music stimulates our imagination, that it has certain emotional characteristics, and that music can change our state of mind.

There are many ways to prepare the mind prior to photographing. Some prefer listening to music, some playing music, some reading poetry, some praying and meditating. Minor White, for example, practiced Zen; Duane Michals and Paul Caponigro followed Buddhism. Sometimes things can work in reverse. Prayer can help in preparing to photograph and photography itself can also be a form of prayer. A friend who is a Jesuit priest and a prominent photographer once told me that for him photography was a form of prayer.

Some photographers have found “mindfulness” helpful. George DeWolfe, in a personal note, wrote, “I use Mindfulness because it puts me here, right now, with a calm and aware mind. … It doesn’t so much guarantee you a great photograph, but it puts you in a place where you can see one. … Above all, I think the main motivation is the love of photography itself—the passion. It is the power that propels us to picture the world we see.”

Figure 1.2. I saw and photographed this moment of mystery and grace of the Eureko Dunes in Death Valley in an instant of authentic recognition and response.

George DeWolfe.