The "decisive moment" seems to be the most discussed but least understood aspect of photography for both the amateur and professional alike. To be sure, most can agree that no other skill is more important in making photographs that resonate emotionally. When asked, most photographers interpret the decisive moment as a function of stopping time. Some go further and speak of heightening tension of the observer by freezing human interaction and behaviors in mid-execution. While both of these are technically correct, I advance that there is much more to this type of photography than simply this.


Boy stealing sugar molasses on the jetty in Mandalay by Ido Magdal

For me, the decisive moment is more an application of Jay Maisel's approach of "Light, Gesture and Color" than it is a tension caused by temporal dissonance. Maisel has oft described good photography as a fruitful combination of the above factors. First and foremost, it's the quality of light being most important in terms of the representation of texture, form and color. Second, the need for effective and emotionally arresting gesture on the part of your subject is paramount. This includes non-living objects as well as living. Finally the ability to combine colors (or tones for you black and white types) in a manner that both attracts and compels the photographic audience as the final layer of creative execution using this model. Now, anyone who has listened to Maisel describe this approach will understand this description is GREATLY simplified, but I contend that in virtually every instance described as a successful "decisive moment" photograph, you see these three formalist factors successfully in balance.

Perception of color is often overlooked in the practice of color photography. Many hobbyists photograph the world in color as opposed to actively seeing, seeking, isolating and composing the color in their immediate environment. When making successful color photographs, color of light, color of subject and color relationships within the composition are all of prime importance. Complex color relationships and dissonant color combinations can be very distracting to the eye within a given environment.

Therefore it is necessary to distill the scene and compose for pleasing color combinations in order to create successfully communicative color photographs. Seeking out different color palettes is a useful method for approaching the complexities of color photography. Common color palettes include monochromatic, analogous, and complimentary.


(Photo by Seth Butler)

A monochromatic color palette relies on variations in lightness and saturation of a single color. These variations are then unified by the differing amounts of the same hue. In the case of Seth Butler's photograph of a woman shopping in Bagan, Myanmar,