Receiving the Moment
I have been doing landscape and nature photography since I was 12 years old, and over the last decade, I have witnessed moments and scenes that I could barely have even imagined. From wild storms, to stunning sunsets, amazing wildlife encounters, starry nights in the middle of nowhere, and so much more, I have had countless experiences all so incredibly meaningful––though not always incredibly unique. Some of the best moments captured are those we can all relate to, like the way seeing a sunrise or sunset makes you feel.
I have found that this is what nature photography comes down to––definitely not gear, and not editing. While both of those can be useful tools, the most basic and important tool to me is the mindset of capturing moments in time.
Ultimately, the job of the photographer is to experience and capture moments in a way that connects the viewer to the scene as best as possible.
I'll take a step further.
Unless you are a taking a photo in which you have controlled and manipulated every aspect of set design, props, background, lighting, subjects, etc., you are simply capturing an experience or moment, and you are NOT the creator of the photo in any sense.
No, this isn't going to be a religious post...
Any time we as photographers (especially nature photographers) 'take' a photo, it is important to remember that we should not be 'taking' anything.
We are messengers of experiences or moments created by the beautiful chaos of atoms, molecules, and energy across the canvas of physical space and time. Some see God in this, but I personally don't, and either way it should guide the photographer to think in terms of being shown a moment and experience instead of 'taking' a photo.
In more practical use, compositional concepts combined with the right framing are used to capture the experience in a way that connects the viewer to that moment in time. Colours, lines, shapes, shadows, textures, and any visual elements that make up the scene should be thought of like notes in a song. Experiment with ways of arranging and displaying those visual elements within the frame to get different effects. Move the camera around and get an idea of the different perspectives you can shoot from and different ways to arrange the different elements of the scene. By finding the right perspective and framing to us, we can connect the viewer to the experience in the best way we can.
In other words, capture the moment in the way that you think best connects the viewer to what that moment felt like.
Am I making any sense here?
Two years ago, my grandpa sent me an article from a great Uncle of mine which enlightened me to this idea. Though it does actually get religious here, thats not what I took from it as I found the message inspiring enough for a non-religious person. I think he puts it very eloquently in this passage, although maybe with a little more 'holy presence' than I would have used:
"When we are receptive we let go of our agendas and expectations. We allow ourselves to see beneath preconceived ideas. Rather than going after what we want in life, or “forcing,” we cultivate a contentment with what actually is. Similarly, instead of “holding back” and merely observing life or falling asleep to it, we stay awake and alert, participating fully in its messiness and we keep our eyes open for the holy presence in its midst. Photographing in this way can become an act of revelation. One of the gifts of art in general, and photography in particular, is that the artist can offer others this vision of the graced ordinary moment."
This is from Richard Rohr's Meditations Week 33 of Finding God in the Arts, available in archive at cac.org for those interested.
To conclude my first post here, let this Idea change not only how you see photography, but how you see life as well. We have very little control of things going on around us and we are all subject to random chance. So let this mindset give meaning to the even the smallest of wonderful experiences and also let it give perspective to the bad ones.
Declan Rohr
Oct 13, 2022