The Decisive Moment

Last month we discussed which is the best camera, and I mentioned that mastering whatever camera you have in your hand is of primary importance. If you’ll remember at the end of the article, I mentioned the concept of “the decisive moment.” This phrase was thoughtfully created by the late, great photographer, Henri Carier-Bresson. The decisive moment is that one millisecond in time that, when captured, speaks to your soul. It tells the story that pulls the viewer into the image. When I think of the decisive moment, I think of “making” a photograph over “taking” a photograph. I want to make an image that people will remember. The image I’ve chosen below, to me, is a decisive moment as a result of patience and attention. I don’t mean looking around and hoping for something cool to happen. I mean I was looking patiently through my camera's viewfinder at this young firefighter when out of nowhere, he turned and looked straight into my camera as if he could feel me watching him. Well, he was right - I was! The images of him and his group before this image are fine, but they’re just a bunch of “hotshots” working a fire. This image speaks to the viewer as you see his young face looking tired from hours of digging, lifting, and chopping. This image also reminds me of the huge debt of thanks that those of us in fire clutched California owe to these heroes. That is what a decisive moment does in a photograph. It makes you think, and it makes you feel. It makes you cry or scream or feel something. Next time you see a photograph that stops you for a second, ask yourself “why?” Was it a decisive moment that made you feel something unexpected?

Below the fire fighter are other displays of the “decisive moment”. Can you see why I feel they are “decisive moment” images?

Some Light Is Just Plain Golden

Which camera is best?