Years ago as my very good friend, and none too shabby a photographer, Tim and I drove to photograph an Indian wedding together he made a comment along the lines of "...of course as trained visual observers we are supposed to notice such things". I believe he was ribbing me for missing some item of interest along the roadside, or perhaps even a road sign :)
Tim's words came floating back to me recently as I drove to photograph yet another Indian wedding and knowing that he would again have grounds to berate me I stopped the car, turned around and drove back a few miles to capture this scene
which had something that faintly reminded me of images from the dustbowl period of our history. The act of thinking, stopping and returning to shoot the image helped me get into the right frame of mind for the job at hand which of course is to find images.
Some are detail shots
some are moments
Some of these moments are subtle, you may wish to click view the large version of the above frame to better appreciate the subtlety of the groom's expression. Sometimes we need to wait a moment or two and recompose a little
As I shot the above I was also very aware of the sun shinning through the trees to my right and although I most certainly not a fan of "flare"
I decided to include this one as it helps give a little more information about the setting.
Jeff Ascough, another good friend and none too shabby a photographer either, has spoken about how in his opinion, a great photograph needs to have three things; composition, light and timing; (If I have misquoted I apologize in advance)
An image may have two out of the three and still be good, however to be "great" it must have all three.
As a photographer who prefers to photograph solo I know that I have to exercise all the skills of a "trained visual observer" in order to capture the essence of any event.
This is why I do advocate stepping back and looking for the images that not only concentrate on the main participants in the ceremony but also on the images that give a more complete story.
...even when it means finding my shoes again.
It helps also when the photographer, aka "trained visual observer", has a solid understanding of all the little things that go on during any event that he/she is photographing...such as the friends who customarily whisper ... in a bride's ear at Indian weddings.
Above all the "trained visual observer" should have cleared his or her mind of all matters that do not pertain to the task at hand.
