Moments of Perfection


It is light that reveals a matter; the form and shape of an object. It is light that allows us to "peek" into the soul of our subject and to expose its essence. We must be present for the revealing moment; that moment in time when light and atmospheric elements conspire to create the essentials needed for the photograph. Maybe it will be a dramatic image created as a storm moves in or breaks up. Perhaps it will be a quiet image made the moment before the sun cracks the horizon. But just because we are in the right location doesn't mean that the "moment" will happen. So we frequent favorite places, time after time and wait until we are there at the decisive moment because great photographs can only be created when each of many elements is correctly placed. Impatient souls may never have these experiences first hand because taking advantage of them requires great planning and effort. These opportunities seldom come to the unprepared or to the slovenly, lazy individual. It is only through purposeful action that the photographer is able to be at the right place at the right time.

The photographic process necessitates an interaction between the artist and the material. And while that relationship may be long term, or just a brief affair, it is a relationship nonetheless. While it is true that there are some methods of "image enhancement" available to the conventional photographer these methods are very limited; we cannot conjure up an images out of our imagination. All photography begins with an original exposure.

As photographers we don't have the luxury of being able to create images out of our imagination. Because of this photography is the most difficult of all the visual arts. A photographer has to be on location when each of a dozen different elements combines. Great photographs are created at the confluence of light and shadow and of form and design. It is there, when everything combines, the light, the subject material and the atmospheric elements that we find these "Moments of Perfection".