Figuring Out What to Shoot
“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat.
“I don’t much care where…,” said Alice.
“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat.
—from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Have you ever felt frustrated because you didn’t know what to photograph? Or perhaps you have an overall subject in mind but can’t figure out what “spin” to put on it. Deciding what subjects to approach—and how to approach them—is a huge part of being a great photographer. After all, the first step in creating successful photographs is determining what you’re trying to capture. Like Alice, until you define a vision, or even a small inkling of a goal, you won’t know which way to go—and you’ll have a difficult time making all the creative decisions regarding exposure, focus, lighting, and composition. Over the years, I’ve discovered a host of tricks to get my creative juices flowing. Whenever you feel stuck in the mud, read this chapter.
I took this photo when I was flying home from a photography field trip. I prefer to carry my camera gear with me rather than check it, and therefore, I had my camera on hand to capture this heavenly scene just before the sun set. Here’s a tip: When photographing through a window, move as close as you can to it; this will minimize any distortions caused by dirt, scratches, and debris on the glass (or plastic). It also helps to use a longer lens and, if you’re shooting with a digital SLR, to use a lens with image-stabilizing technology.
1/125 SEC. AT f/4.5, ISO 100, 100MM MACRO LENS
I FIRST LEARNED the term previsualizing from studying the writings of Ansel Adams, and it has certainly paid off over the years. Adams used the term to describe the act of allowing yourself to imagine, ahead of time, what kind of photograph you are most interested in capturing. Instead of simply responding to events or scenes as they present themselves, the idea is to think ahead about what visual goals most inspire you.
This previsualizing challenges you to anticipate what could happen and how you might control your camera to create new, unique, and satisfying images. Even though something different might (and probably will) happen, and you could likely end up with a completely different photo than you had envisioned, this process opens up hidden wellsprings of inspiration. By simply putting thought into what you would like to capture, you make it that much easier to achieve your photographic goals.
This creative visualization is both fun and rewarding. Allow yourself to get playful and excited, thinking “outside of the box.” Sit down and brainstorm about potential photographic subjects, as well as about how to capture these subjects in unique and attention-grabbing ways. And, trust that you will be provided with everything you need to achieve your photographic goals. All you have to do to realize those goals is to sit down and define them.
As soon as you have a rough idea of what you would like to photograph, go somewhere. Simply head out the door for the day, or take a long trip. Either way, get out to a new and exciting place. The idea here is to go places in order to find subjects that inspire you to photograph. You may not need to go far. In some cases, taking your kids to the park will be all you need to get the creative juices flowing. At other times, in order to feel totally inspired and stimulated, you’ll need to go somewhere you’ve never gone before.
Don’t hesitate to help a photo along if it needs a little something extra. No one’s going to judge you if you take proactive steps to get exactly what you want. For this photo, I put a yellow rain slicker (that we had been carrying with us throughout England) on my son, gave him a tourist brochure, and asked him to “mail it.” As he tried, I quickly backed up and shot several images using a fairly wide-angle setting on my lens. I placed him in the lower right of the composition to get as much of the charming Cotswold neighborhood in the background as I could.
1/250 SEC. AT f/8, ISO 100, 16–35MM LENS AT 16MM
Getting away also helps by minimizing distractions. Especially when taking a long trip, you quickly forget about the laundry, your duties at work, sifting through e-mail, or answering the phone. You leave the “To Do” list behind, which allows you to think only about taking great photos. This simplicity can give you the kind of clarity you need to feel creative. However, it is important that your mission is to get great photos, rather than to get away from it all. Going on a vacation on which you do nothing but relax by the beach and take an occasional picture does not qualify. You have to be a bit dedicated to photography.
It’s important to fully understand that such trips are “work.” In order to get the great pictures, you’ll need to be “on” all the time, constantly thinking about what you can photograph and how you can make it look interesting. You’ll often be required to wake up early, and skip breakfast (and sometimes dinner, too), settling for the occasional snack instead. That doesn’t mean you can’t have fun, though. After all, photography is fun! When the photography gets especially laborious, I remind myself that you can’t have play without work. You can’t have one without the other. And I know of no work more fun than photography.
Keeping a Visual Notebook
One excellent way to define your goals is to keep a collection of images that inspire you. You could simply write down a list of photo ideas, but as photographers are generally visual people, it’s usually more effective to collect pictures.
Subscribe to magazines or visit the library. Look though catalogs, books, and Web sites like BetterPhoto.com—anything with the kind of photographs you enjoy. Examine these photos and pay attention to how they make you feel. Whenever an image causes an emotional response in you, make a note to remind you of that photo. Better yet, print the photo off the Web site, make a copy, or cut it out so that you can place it into a protective sleeve and keep it in a binder. This will provide you with a running book of photo ideas to which you can turn whenever you need inspiration. These images—by Bill Neill and Nick Kelsh—have certainly inspired me.
Although it takes time and effort to plan ahead in this way, making a photo idea binder is fun to do, and it plays a powerful part in helping you make great photos. It helps you clarify, in your mind’s eye, the subjects you most love.
As I’ve just explained, planning is good—and necessary to the photographic process. But having said that, don’t be so inflexible that you overlook and miss unplanned photographic opportunities. Sometimes, what you’ve planned doesn’t materialize, but that doesn’t mean other—possibly better—subjects won’t present themselves. You need to be ready for, and open to, anything.
On a recent trip to Kauai, Hawaii, I woke up one morning before dawn and drove down the island to go scuba diving. I was specifically interested in photographing the beautiful underwater sea turtles. On the way down, I passed the community college and noticed a rainbow near an outdoor gazebo. I immediately pulled the car over and ran back to the exact spot at which the lower end of the rainbow appeared to touch the gazebo. I mounted my camera securely on a tripod and made several exposures, experimenting with both horizontal and vertical compositions.
Once I felt satisfied that I had captured the shot, I continued to the scuba diving site. The actual dive turned out to be a photographic disaster: After only one underwater exposure, my camera malfunctioned, and I was forced to drag along a nonworking camera for the remainder of the dive. What’s more, I encountered many sea turtles and I couldn’t make a single picture of them! However, the trip was not a total loss, because although I didn’t get the shot that I was specifically seeking, I did come home with a beautiful image of this rainbow and gazebo.
1/250 SEC. AT f/6.7, ISO 100, 28–105MM LENS AT 105MM
TO CONTINUALLY ENJOY the work of photography, it’s essential that you photograph what you love. Resist the temptation to photograph things just because the pros do it. Photographing nudes in black and white with expensive equipment, for example, won’t necessarily play a big part in getting others to take you seriously as a photographer. What matters most is the vision you bring to the table—and your persistence.
Photographing subjects you love—whether they happen to be nature scenes, your kids, your pets, or local wildlife—will help you develop your own ideas and will help you persevere when the going gets tough. Focus on what you love and the great photos will eventually follow.
For success with photographing people, one of the best and easiest things to do to is to move in closer. Simply focusing on your subject’s face or eyes will eliminate any distracting surrounding details. You can also move in closer on an object that means something to your subject, such as a child’s favorite toy. Or, if there’s a favorite outfit of your child’s that you’d especially like to remember, have your child wear it when it comes time to take pictures. These tips, in addition to the tried-and-true rules and ideas about composition, will help you make successful portraits. (See here for more on composition.)
PUT YOUR SUBJECT AT EASE
When photographing people, the key is to interact with them in a lighthearted and friendly manner. To do this, learn to work your camera without thinking about it, and more importantly, treat people with a positive, respectful attitude—just how you would like to be treated if someone were taking your picture.
Beholding the beauty of a natural vista is truly a multimedia experience. We see with threedimensional depth and flexibility, our eyes adjusting instantly so that we can subconsciously enjoy the subtle differences in tone, distance, and definition. Without even thinking about it, we turn effortlessly to take in the entire 360-degree scene. We take a cool breath of air and let the fragrant smells trigger memories, as our ears are treated to bird calls, crickets chirping, and the sounds of nature.
Why are we surprised, then, when we have trouble capturing a beautiful nature scene in a flat, two-dimensional 4 × 6-inch photo? After all, a picture is only an abstraction; we abstract—or pull out—a thin slice of visual reality. But although you cannot record the visual depth and contrast of a scene—let alone the sounds, smells, and feelings of being there—you can choose which elements to include and how to render the image in a way that evokes memories of experiencing the scene in person.
The first step is to become conscious of light and how it helps, or hinders, an accurate and thoughtprovoking capture of a scene. (See chapters 4 and 5 for a discussion of the nature of light and how cameras record light.) The second step is to learn the rules of composition. These guidelines (see chapter 6) apply regardless of camera type, and they offer the quickest route to satisfying, enjoyable picture-taking. If you’ve been frustrated in the past, looking at disappointing pictures that failed to do justice to a beautiful vista, hang in there. Even if you cannot capture all of the threedimensional sights and sounds of a scene, you can certainly come home with photos that successfully represent these awe-inspiring views simply by learning these few tricks of the trade.
If there’s one universal truth about raising children, it’s that they grow up too fast. Before you know it, they no longer fit into their cutest little outfits. That’s one reason why I’m thrilled to have this photo. My son loved this doggy Halloween costume. He would ask to wear it at least once a day. Noticing this, I made a note to photograph him in it in my garage studio. So one evening, we had fun doing a mini fashion show. This kind of project reaps double rewards: You not only get great photos and good practice, but you also build a collection of fantastic mementos for you and your children.
1/90 SEC. AT f/11, ISO 100, 28–105MM LENS AT 28MM
When you feel uninspired or photographically frustrated, sit down with pen and paper and write down ideas for potential photographic themes. A photographic theme is a unified, cohesive idea that runs throughout a series of photographs. It could be anything from a particular color to a certain subject or prop … whatever you can imagine! As you write your ideas down, don’t allow yourself to judge, edit, or erase. You don’t want to get into “editor mode.” Just stay in “creative mode.” Let yourself brainstorm.
Another good exercise is to stay with one subject and explore it from as many angles as possible, discovering all its details. Experiment with different exposures, focal lengths, and viewpoints. Sometimes your first interpretation of a subject is the best one, but other times, your images may benefit from the further exploration that comes from sticking with your subject.
1/250 SEC. AT f/10, ISO 100, 28–105MM LENS AT 28MM
1/1000 SEC. AT f/10, ISO 800, 100MM MACRO LENS
Since I often enjoy photos with colorful umbrellas, I decided to make them a theme. My wife liked the idea and purchased a couple of umbrellas for me to take when I went out shooting. Photographing these props enabled me to produce the kinds of images I was after in a semicontrolled way. More importantly, the theme gave my creativity something to focus on.
For the first image, my wife graciously stood on one of our suitcases for several minutes while I made a variety of images. For the second image, I simply placed an umbrella among some standing stones in England to give the scene an added splash of color. The third image was a more spontaneous composition. As I was leaning out of my hotel window in Lyon, France, it began to rain, and I noticed this woman walking across the square as she started to unfurl her umbrella. Placing her in the upper right corner of the composition, according to the Rule of Thirds, and using the lines on the ground to create an interesting texture and pattern, I captured what has become one of my favorite photographs.
1/250 SEC. AT f/5.6, ISO 200, 100–300MM LENS AT 185MM
Sometimes the process of identifying your subject is progressive. You don’t know exactly what you’re attempting to capture until after you’ve tried a variety of compositions. So relax and let yourself have fun. Experiment and try a bunch of different things, knowing that you cannot really make a wrong decision, just different decisions. If something catches your eye, ask yourself what attracts you to the scene and then begin shooting various compositions.
Intrigued by the colors and textures in this aging café sign in Hornitos, California, I took a few pictures and then decided to keep “working it.” As I zoomed in closer with my telephoto lens, I tried a variety of horizontal and vertical compositions, experimenting with different settings. I didn’t worry too much about which one was the best. Instead, I just let myself enjoy taking pictures, knowing that I’d have plenty of time to figure out which one I liked best later.
1/500 SEC. AT f/10, ISO 100, 100–400MM LENS AT 100MM
1/500 SEC. AT f/8, ISO 100, 100–400MM LENS AT 300MM
1/500 SEC. AT f/8, ISO 100, 100–400MM LENS AT 400MM
If you’re still unsure of exactly what to photograph, another option is to go out looking for details. When I don’t know what to photograph, I reach for a telephoto or macro (close-up) lens and go out searching for any small, attractive details that catch my eye, and when I find them, I move in very close (see here for more on macro, close-up or photography).
The image below shows detail in a cowboy’s boot that I found visually interesting. When captured with proximity and simplicity, a close-up image invites the viewer to wonder about the nature of the overall scene. What’s more, moving in close on a detail can give you ideas and a sense of direction when photographing a scene or event.
Regardless of what you intend to photograph, be willing to switch gears. Sometimes your original idea just isn’t working out. The weather may have gone south. Your child may suddenly be unwilling to cooperate. You might discover that the famous monument you were looking forward to photographing is closed until 10:00 a.m., long after the good light has come and gone.
When you’re stuck in a rut, one great trick is to search for details, using a telephoto lens to move in especially close to your subject (we’ll talk more about lenses in the chapter on composition). This image was actually inspired by a photo that won First Prize in our monthly photo contest at BetterPhoto.com over a year ago. Don’t be afraid to attempt to duplicate photos that inspire you. Odds are likely that you’ll end up creating your own unique vision—and learning a lot about photography in the process.
1/180 SEC. AT f/6.7, ISO 100, 100–400MM LENS AT 100MM
However, you don’t want to toss in the towel and call it quits at the first problem. If you’re thrown a curve ball, first try to work with the situation as best as you can. You might find that you get the great shots when you continually “work” your subject, trying different angles and points of view, different exposure settings, and different compositions for your photographs.
If continued attempts fail to succeed, don’t hesitate to go in an entirely different direction. For example, if your two-year-old simply won’t cooperate as planned, turn your attention to the flowers in your yard or making a beautiful portrait of a favorite pet. Simply being flexible opens up many inspirational photographic opportunities.
Also try to be flexible in how you actually take the picture. Try doing something new, like lying down on the ground. Bring wacky and colorful props around with you when you go out shooting. Ask strangers if you can take their picture, striking up conversations and making new friends. When photographing kids, talk in strange voices and make funny faces. Encourage yourself to step out of character so that you can both get exceptional images and have a fun time in the process!
I had been looking forward to photographing a set of ancient standing stones in England, (see here), but when I arrived at the location, I was surprised to find local livestock sharing the land. The cattle were allowed to roam around the monument. As I set up my camera and waited for the sun to get low on the horizon, the cows became more and more accustomed to me. After photographing one particularly friendly and inquisitive cow with a 16mm wide-angle lens, I looked up and realized that I was surrounded by curious cattle. These are extremely large animals, and I’ll be the first to admit I was a little intimidated. However, when they began nosing my backpack and slobbering all over my laptop, I drew the line and I shooed them away.
1/60 SEC. AT f/4, ISO 100, 16–35MM LENS AT 16MM
IF THERE’S ONE simple thing that sets apart the picture-takers who get great shots from those who don’t, it’s whether or not they take the camera with them—everywhere they go. Take the camera when you go to the store, to work, onto the airplane, to a party, out for a drive…everywhere! Don’t limit your camera-carrying to when you go on vacation or when you feel specifically motivated to go out and take pictures.
If you don’t already take your camera with you everywhere you go, think about what’s holding you back. Is it that your camera is too big and bulky? Is it that you feel embarrassed when taking pictures of people or particular situations? Or, do you simply forget to take it with you? Whatever the reason, find a solution. Your photographic future depends on you having your camera on hand when the inspirational photo op occurs. If you frequently forget it, keep it next to the front door by your car keys. If your camera is bulky, by all means consider purchasing a more compact one. Do whatever it takes to have that camera at your side at all times.
Don’t be afraid to have your camera hanging from your neck regardless of where you’ll be going or whom you’ll be meeting. It’s crucial that you get into the habit of taking the camera with you everywhere you go, every time you head out the door.
I made this photo at breakfast on a recent trip to the United Kingdom. The restaurant was decorated with flowers on every table and gorgeous huge paintings that resembled macro photographs of flowers. After eating a bit of breakfast, I took my camera to a nearby table and crouched low enough to include both an actual flower in the foreground and one of the large paintings in the background. I then chose a large enough aperture opening to get a shallow depth of field that would render the background out of focus. This aperture, in combination with the composition, created the “echo” effect I was after. (See here for more on aperture).
1/60 SEC. AT f/4, ISO 100, 16–35MM LENS AT 16MM
Both when you’re in the field and prior to heading out, it’s helpful to ask yourself a few questions about your goals and the way in which you approach things. For example:
1 What’s your motive for picture-taking? (Do you want to share experiences with friends and family, to simply have fun, to preserve memories, to fill scrapbooks, to tell a story, to get a job as a photographer, or to become rich and famous? What drives you to make photos?)
2 Do you have any particular interests that lend themselves to inspired photography? (If you like to travel, your digital photography subjects will be very different from someone who is primarily interested in photographing children at home.)
3 What’s your style? (Would you consider yourself organized and punctual? Are you a pack rat or someone who likes to clear things out? Do you like to shoot just one shot every so often, or do you like to “shoot first, and ask questions later”?) Figure out your own personal shooting style.
I, personally, am motivated to preserve memories and teach. My interests are in people, wildlife, and travel. I prefer to take as many images as possible, and then severely edit my work later. This causes me to work long after the actual shooting, spending countless hours in front of the computer sorting through the results, editing the keepers, and examining any unsuccessful shots. This work, however, pays off. It is the method that I’ve found works best for me.
Thinking about the answers to these questions, will go a long way to helping you improve your photography.
One motivation for picture-taking might be to tell a story. It was with this motive in mind that I photographed this farrier doing a variety of tasks while preparing to “hot shoe” a horse. I particularly enjoy this photo because of the interesting perspective I got by moving in close with a wide-angle lens, as well as the way the horse is looking back as if to ask, What are you doing with my hoof?
1/250 SEC. AT f/8, ISO 200, 16–35MM LENS AT 16MM
This assignment has two parts:
1 First, start a visual idea file or notebook. Spend at least an hour going through your favorite magazines and cutting out pictures that you love. If you don’t want to ruin the magazines, make copies or use Post-It notes to mark the pages to which you want to refer back.
2 Then, think of something or somebody you love, and make a weekend project out of photographing this subject. If possible, include objects that have sentimental value to give the photo extra meaning. Photograph your subject in as many unusual and creative ways as you can imagine.
