Capturing the Shot
“Did you see that? How did they do that?”
Have you ever asked any of these questions after seeing a photo or a scene from a movie?
Well, the most basic answers to these questions 95% of the time are planning, patience and practice. Yes, we have the other 5% called luck; but whether its explosions, car crashes, animals in the wild, beautiful sunsets or sunrises; pre-production and planning are critical. It can sometimes take weeks, months or even years to get the ideas and the right team together to achieve that one special moment where you make your audience go “WOW!”
Other times capturing a moment, can involve being in isolation, missing your loved ones, and going back to nature to get that specific image. For example, that cub in Yellow Stone Park, or that great white shark off the coast of Africa which you have been waiting on for months.
Audiences most of the time don’t know what went into getting that perfect shot; the many tears that have been shed, the many meals that have been missed, or the many birthday parties that went unattended.
From where we sit at 13 Degrees North (of the equator);absolutely nothing beats patience and taking the time to make sure you get the best out of every frame. That is the utmost important skill every photographer or director of photography must possess because as the old saying goes, ‘taking time is not laziness’.
You can climb the highest mountain, swing 50 ft in the air from a telescopic boom (crane), create the world’s biggest explosion onscreen or simply capture the turn of a head; but know that, one moment in time, that one frame, requires all the attention to detail and patience. So, breathe deeply, take your time and capture that shot.
(By Kirk Dawson)