Photography, whether photojournalism, documentaries, sports, wildlife or even landscapes, has a lot to do with camera placement and timing. But there are some basic mistakes that most of us photographers make that stand in the way of getting good photos.
Spacetime is a great idea. Three-dimensional space (up/down, left/right, and forward/backward) and one-dimensional time (it moves only in one direction, from past to future) are constituent parts of the same thing. . Therefore, you can only be in one place at a time. A skilled photographer knows where and when to press the shutter. That skill was achieved not by luck but by planning.
For example, I am about to take a picture of the sea at sunrise. I figured out where I had to go to see the sun rise above the horizon, and I timed it there at the right time. If I go to the wrong place, at the wrong time, I won’t be able to shoot.
So the first mistake people make is not planning the photo shoot properly, thus not being in the right place in spacetime. Misquoting a famous military saying: “Proper planning in advance prevents poor photographic performance.”
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with just walking around with your camera and hoping for the best; I do it. In fact, all of the photos accompanying this article I took this wet early morning. They are ok, but not amazing. My planning often includes knowing the position of the sun at a particular time, the weather, the state of the tides, the subject I will be photographing, the equipment I need to bring, the location and camera settings. photograph and wear appropriate clothing.
Because I’ve lived here for 15 years, some of it has become second nature; The historical plan is ingrained in my mind, so the experience will continue. I was in the right place, I was wearing the right clothes, my camera was set correctly, and the tide was about to be right. However, the probability of me capturing something stunning is much higher if I plan. That would result in me leaving an hour earlier on a brighter morning.
Carrying the right gear doesn’t mean you have to pack a camera bag full of every lens I own, carry all five spare batteries, and carry a tripod with you everywhere. In fact, I no longer own a camera bag. They impede and restrict movement. Also, I won’t change lenses by position for the damage that may be caused. Whether shooting landscapes, weddings, wildlife or street photography, all those unwanted accessories are just a hindrance.
Photographers buy a lot of kit and feel obligated to carry it everywhere. They will get better photos and have less back pain if they shoot only what they need for their planned photo. So I would probably have my camera fixed on a tripod and an ND filter screwed into the lens to capture seascapes. For bird photos, it’s just camera and shoulder. The battery will be fully charged, that should last all day, and the SD card will be empty and in-camera.
Without that heavy tool bag, I could safely climb over rocks or wade into the sea without being impeded by it. I want my position in spacetime to be standing with the camera taking pictures, not being underwater after losing my balance and falling. Plus, I don’t want the rising tide to wash away my spare if I leave it in my bag on the beach; I have seen that happen.
The next mistake may not be a mistake at all, but a different approach to photography and it’s about timing the shot. It is nearly impossible to talk about time in photography without a nod to Henri Cartier-Bresson. So, now that there’s no other way around, let’s discuss two approaches to capturing the decisive moment.
Historically, photographers would study their subjects. As a result, they will learn to predict the exact moment to press the shutter. Then the motor wind was invented, which allowed continuous shooting, albeit at a slower rate by today’s standards. My camera may turn off 120 raw frames a second and save the image to a buffer before pressing the shutter button completely. As a result, my chances of missing footage are greatly reduced, as my reaction time is taken out of the equation.
Do you see the problem? That quick approach to photography means that novice photographers don’t learn the skill of anticipating action. Is this important? They still get the photo, and if the outcome is all that matters to them, the answer is no, it’s not. However, if photography also means learning how the subject works, turning these modes off and learning how to shoot frame-by-frame will facilitate that. The obvious subject I’m referring to here is wildlife, but it could be an airplane, ocean waves, people on the street, or sunlight glimmering through a leaf. All the photos in this article were taken in single frame.
That quick approach to guaranteed results, perhaps appealing to the modern mindset, is to have everything at once without having to work hard. However, I wonder if we, by transferring so much to technology, are losing the sense of achievement that used to be the result of effort and learning.
The final mistake concerning time and space is the idealistic pursuit of the common. Photography trends often start because a skilled and creative photographer finds their own style, placing their camera in a particular place at a particular time. People hailed it as a success, and then they copied it. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with emulating the style and technique of a photographer we love, but that should only be the starting place to find our own.
Take, for example, studio portraiture. Most are within a limited number of styles copied from the likes of Annie Leibovitz or David Bailey. Then Google images of the White House, Eiffel Tower, Leaning Tower of Pisa, or St Paul’s Basilica. Many pictures are so similar that they become cliché. So you can also have photos of birds on a stick, awkward perspectives, black and white Yosemite photos, newlyweds looking at the landscape towards the sunset or broken frames uncomfortably cropped. Adding a cliché has nothing to do with photography or our development in the arts, although it could be a great place to begin our photographic journey into spacetime. time.
How much do you plan for a shoot? Do you rely on technology or do you go back to the basics and spin everything manually? It would be great to hear your thoughts in the comments.
