Digital Experiment/Exercise: Decisive Moment

Decisive Momoment:
"simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as of a precise organization of forms which give that event its proper expression." Henri Cartier-Bresson

Choose one photograph from a photographer that you like from Photograph as Contemprary Art by Cotton, or a recent photograph by a photographer we've seen, read about, or discussed in class that you think works in the style of decisive moment. I encourage you to check out photo books from the library too.

  1. Explain how the photograph you chose is working structurally and compositionally as having the qualities of "decisive moment".
  2. Then take a digital photograph, specifically for this assignment, as your own independent attempt at a decisive moment. Work it out on your own terms. Don't try to reproduce the structure of the photograph you chose.
  3. Compare and contrast your photograph with the one you chose. Where do the two align in how they achieve (or fall short of) a decisive moment, and where do they diverge? What does that comparison tell you about your own approach?
  4. Post the photograph you referenced (from online search), your text and photograph on google drive [here] by renaming/copying the slide template


The goal is not necessary to take a great photograph (although it doesn't hurt) but to understand and internalize the process of taking such a photograph, through comparison rather than replication. It will inform and change the way you look at photographs.

This isn't a creative project. It is a technical exercise. That is, don't force your spin on it. What I expect is a straightforward attempt at a decisive moment, followed by an honest comparison of what worked and what didn't. That is why I value the attempt/analysis and not the end result



I value your intent and analysis more than the end result. Great decisive moment photographs are hard to come by... as indicated by books such as "Photographs Not Taken"