For this unit we are studying the (in)decisive moment. This is thinking about photography in the moment, something that could be captured only once and never again.
Henri Cartier Bresson
In 1952, French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson released his photobook The Decisive Moment, he is considered to be a master of candid photography. The purpose of the book is to showcase "seizing the moment" in photography. I chose the quote “The picture is good or not from the moment it was caught in the camera.” I like this quote because it shows the honesty that with all the effects and filters added etc. the quality of the photo is determined by the photographer. I find his attitude towards photography interesting because it seems very honest. He knows that to really have an eye for how to compose a good photograph, it takes time and practice. This is best described in probably his most famous quote, "your first 10,000 photographs are your worst". I also find this challenging in a way, as someone who has just started photography seriously, knowing those quotes are the truth from a respected photographer like Cartier-Bresson it tells me I have alot to learn.
Spain, Valencia 1933
I chose this image because I think it relates to the concept of the (in)decisive moment really well. Its quite a simple photograph, a child running past and dragging their hand on an old decayed wall, but its something that has clearly been captured in a moment that will never return. The slight motion blur by the childs' hand and legs showing how they're running past, the expression on their face showing that they're just mindlessly running past, not really thinking about their actions, just as a child would. Something like this is so common but so rare to capture in a good way. Theres always rinsed out photos of happy, running children but this one is different due to Cartier-Bressons' style of photography and the way he composed this photograph.
I chose this image because I think it relates to the concept of the (in)decisive moment really well. Its quite a simple photograph, a child running past and dragging their hand on an old decayed wall, but its something that has clearly been captured in a moment that will never return. The slight motion blur by the childs' hand and legs showing how they're running past, the expression on their face showing that they're just mindlessly running past, not really thinking about their actions, just as a child would. Something like this is so common but so rare to capture in a good way. Theres always rinsed out photos of happy, running children but this one is different due to Cartier-Bressons' style of photography and the way he composed this photograph.
Spain, Valencia 1933
Inside the sliding doors of a bullfight arena
I really like this photograph from the series I looked at. I think the composition of it is perfect and it just has something so rare about it. I was a little confused when I first looked at this photograph, I thought Cartier-Bresson was using mirrors and reflections to make this picture, but it is purely down to composition and timing. The face of the guard looking in contrasting with the other guard out of focus opposite looking in to the other sliding doors. This moment seems so perfectly timed, the photograph almost seems to be from two perspectives, one facing the guard and one looking at him.
Inside the sliding doors of a bullfight arena
I really like this photograph from the series I looked at. I think the composition of it is perfect and it just has something so rare about it. I was a little confused when I first looked at this photograph, I thought Cartier-Bresson was using mirrors and reflections to make this picture, but it is purely down to composition and timing. The face of the guard looking in contrasting with the other guard out of focus opposite looking in to the other sliding doors. This moment seems so perfectly timed, the photograph almost seems to be from two perspectives, one facing the guard and one looking at him.
Contact Sheets
Henri Cartier-Bressons' contact sheets all look like a development of one image, they are multiple photographs of the natural movement around him. It seems like he's held his camera in one place and let the subject matter do what it has been doing normally, with no planning or posing in place. From this series he has circled multiple pictures in red to decide which ones came out the best from this series, all taking a chance as none may have worked out how Bresson wanted. This is his whole development of candid photography
Henri Cartier-Bressons' contact sheets all look like a development of one image, they are multiple photographs of the natural movement around him. It seems like he's held his camera in one place and let the subject matter do what it has been doing normally, with no planning or posing in place. From this series he has circled multiple pictures in red to decide which ones came out the best from this series, all taking a chance as none may have worked out how Bresson wanted. This is his whole development of candid photography
Nick Waplington
We looked at artist Nick Waplington's work, particularly with Alexander McQueen and his book 'The Indecisive Momento'. We looked at a video of him explaining his work process. In the video he explained that his work "deals with the outside world, issues that are either personal or issues in our world today", looking at his photographs, I can see what he means by this. The photographs taken in his 'Living Room' series explores personal issues within peoples' living room, showcasing the everyday household problems and happenings that are common to everyone in their own private way. Whereas in his book 'The Indecisive Momento' he explores issues within the places he is traveling, issues on a much larger scale. For example there is an image that shows a run down block of flats, which is an indirect addressing of the issue of poverty within Central and South America. The way Waplington subtly showcases these images clearly shows how his work is part of the (in)decisive moment. You can tell from looking at these images that he hasn't planned them or thought about them, he's simply seen them and taken the photograph to document it. His work with Alexander McQueen shows he can put his style of photography into action even when he is at something he has been asked to do and planned. All his photos from the series show the people behind the work, not the final products, they are rarely seen scenarios captured. I have chosen two diptychs from The Indecisive Momento to annotate below.
Diptychs from The Indecisive Momento
I chose to analyse this diptych because of the difference and similarity between the two images. The image of the television relates to the image of the tower block in terms of shape and shadow. The light and shadows in these images contrast between each other, the picture of the television is light and only features shadows towards the left of the image whereas the whole tower block is covered in shadows making it a much darker image overall, with a small box of light in an alley at the bottom. The difference in light shown shows a contrast between these two images and might be why Waplington chose to put them together as diptychs. They both feature rectangular shapes, the shape of the television and the shapes of the windows and balconies on the block, showing the similarities in shape.
These two photos have some clear similarities between them. In terms of composition they're quite opposite, the image on the right is quite blank but the image on the right is very detailed in comparison due to the surrounded. They both have similar subjects. They both feature a girl, looking like a daughter. The first one is a photograph of a print of a girl in an extravagant dress, looking as if it was taken on a very important occasion or a memorable event. This relates to the other photo, the subject is a (presumably, we'll never really know) father teaching his daughter how to ride a bike or at least helping her ride it. I chose this diptych because I really like the subject of the photo on the right, an old man with one arm holding up a bike to help this girl ride it. I think it represents the whole concept of the indecisive moment, something so rare to see captured without a second thought.
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