From the Rough Cut
From the Rough Cut
From the Rough Cut
Exercise: Silent Pictures
This exercise is going to potentially be one of the most difficult within this book. Yet perhaps it will be one of the more rewarding. That’s not to say that you will instantly create better pictures—that may or may not happen. This exercise will help you to become a more observant photographer. And ultimately this will lead to new ways of thinking and seeing, which in turn will lead to creating much more powerful pictures. The requirements are to exaggerate being quiet and slowing down. By exaggerating things a bit, you will learn even more.
- Step 1: Planning
- Step 2: Photo Shoot, Part 1—Conversation
- Step 3: Photo Shoot, Part 2—Silent Pictures
- Step 4: Photo Shoot, Part 3—Conversation
- Step 5: Reflections
Set up a 30-minute photo shoot with a subject of your choice. Before the shoot, explain the overall vision, flow, and details (as described below) for the shoot.
For the first 10 minutes of the shoot, meet your subject and talk with him with a calm demeanor. Discuss your vision for the shoot. Reiterate that you are doing this assignment to grow as a photographer and ask for his help in this process. Share your vision by articulating what type of images you want to create; something that is silent and strong. Explain that you don’t want the pictures to be theatrical or contrived—the goal is authenticity. Talk about the flow of the shoot—10 minutes conversing, 20 minutes shooting, and 10 minutes reflecting back on the shoot. Explain that during the 20-minute shoot it will be completely silent, that the goal will be to be patient, quiet, and still. The communication will be nonverbal with gestures and you will only be taking 10 pictures.
For the next 20 minutes, be patient and quiet as you work. Aim to create 10 strong portraits.
After the 20 minutes have passed, graciously thank the subject for participating in this project. Ask him or her about the experience, what worked, and what didn’t. Ask the subject for advice on how you could nonverbally communicate even better.
Take ten minutes to jot down your own reflections about the exercise. Write down both the positive and negative. Write about what you learned. Next, outline a few action steps that you can take the next time you are photographing a person. Finally, whether or not the exercise was a success, consider doing it a second time with another person to grow even further.
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Figure 3 Caption: Kelly Slater is a ten-time world champion surfer, celebrity, and philanthropist who leads an exciting and busy life. His voice mail box, email in-box, and schedule are always full. Yet I wasn’t interested in capturing the bustle and excitement of surf stardom and fame. Rather, I was looking for a more authentic moment where Kelly was quiet and engaged.
“In a portrait, I’m looking for the silence in somebody.” —Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Part of the inspiration for this exercise comes from the photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson. He once photographed Ezra Pound and the entire photo shoot was quiet. He sat with Pound for over 30 minutes and not a word was exchanged, yet a few powerful photographs were made.
Being quiet was not the norm for Cartier-Bresson, yet silence was a significant part of his photography. He walked and worked quietly. In his own words he said, “One has to tiptoe lightly and steal up to one’s quarry...avoid making a commotion, just as you wouldn’t stir up the water before fishing.” And this was true in all of his work from street photography to portraits.
Not only was Cartier-Bresson quiet, he approached things slowly. He advises, “We must avoid snapping away, shooting quickly and without thought, overloading ourselves with unnecessary images that clutter our memory and diminish the clarity of the whole.”
Take some time to study the work of Henri Cartier-Bresson and imagine how he tiptoed. Look up his work online and consider watching the movie The Impassioned Eye or buying one of his many books, like Henri Cartier-Bresson (Masters Photography Series). Listen to his photographs and you will hear a distinct voice; a voice that is not loud and overstated but one that is quiet and strong.