The Decisive Moment
The image below was taken in Trafalgar Square, London, UK on a busy Saturday afternoon in October 2024 and it is of an Evangelical group that I stood and observed for approximately 60 minutes.
During that time I took at least 30 images as I kept adjusting my position to them, observing their movement, their animations, their choreographic flow - this is the only clean & uncluttered image from that 30 which captures “the decisive moment” which as many photographers will know is a famous quote from Henri Cartier-Bresson.
What makes an image interesting in the first instance ? - ask 10 random people and you’ll likely get 10 different viewpoints, all equally valid - however, what elevates an everyday scene that you’d ordinarily walk past into something that, once photographed, becomes worth more than a glance and invites the viewer into the image as if they were themselves at that same scene ? - it’s the capture of that “decisive moment” - it’s the conclusion of spotting the potential, working the scene if chance allows and being effectively within the scene whilst remaining candid, patience is vital and that only comes through years of experience - not unsuprinsingly the hit rate of “decisive moment” keeper images of even the most seasoned photographers is something of the order that’s reckoned to be 5 per annum, at best !
The “moment” could be anything that elevates the everyday usual we wouldn’t give a 2nd glance at into possibly the ‘unusual in the usual’ - mostly it’s that serendipitous, rare to be repeated piece of magic that every street & documentary photographer strives after.
Expression, gesture, animation when coupled with choreographic flow, repetition of pattern & shape, elements of symmetry, strong figure to ground ratio and a good dose of decent light thrown in for good measure, these are key ingredients for making strong images that keep the viewer engaged.
Patience, I’ve learned, is a massive part of successful photography, I have 1000’s of failed images that will never see light of day ! … it’s all part of the journey.
The most beautiful thing about the art of photography is that you have to be there to do it, there is no other way.
Evangelical Synchronous - Trafalgar Square, London, UK - October 2024