Finding, Figuring, Framing, Focusing, Firing

[Brian C. Miller]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=94AKr9hCsFU

John Free talks about photography. He says it isn't about seeing. Everybody has eyes, so everybody can see. It's about the heart.

Find the subject,
Figure out how to connect to it,
Frame it, the closer the better,
Focus on what's appropriate,
Fire when the moment is right.

(Seen at PetaPixel (http://www.petapixel.com))

[MDR]

Thanks for the video, he is right imho.

Dominik

[Jay DeFehr]

It's all fine and well to say seeing is not important for a photographer, and "heart" is, but unless one offers some insight into the relationship between the human visual perception system and an emotional reaction on the part of a viewer of a photograph, what has one really said? I don't think it's very instructive to tell a student of photography to connect emotionally with his subject, or audience unless one provides some insight into the mechanisms that might create an emotional connection. The 5 Fs seems like nothing more than a summary of what photographers do, or should do according to some old school street photographers.
1) identify your subject
2-3) Compose for visual interest ("If your photos aren't good enough, you're not close enough" Robert Cappa)
4) Focus on the center of interest (don't use autofocus)
5) Expose at the "decisive moment" (HCB)

Nothing very new or interesting here, despite the intentionally provocative but insubstantial notion that seeing isn't important.

[Ken Lee]

His video may be just the right message for someone out there.

We can respect anyone who is willing to teach and share. We're lucky to live in an era when there is so much information freely available.

Teaching is one of the fastest ways to learn.

[Heroique]

His claim that the subconscious is what controls the final “Firing” step might start a debate between handheld & tripod-based photographers, the former more likely to agree w/ him.

[Jay DeFehr]

His view that the subconscious is what controls the final “Firing” step might start a debate between handheld & tripod-based photographers, the former more likely to agree w/ him.

It's not a new idea, but I don't think there's much support for it in cognitive science. Unconscious/ bottom-up actions typically evolve over long periods, for practical purposes, like approach/avoidance mechanisms. A FMRI of a photographer's brain in the act of photographing might provide some clues, but that might be difficult to arrange. A person pretending to photograph, and pushing a button might do. I suspect pressing a shutter release is a conscious act.

[Mike Anderson]

I think it's good advice, especially for novice/intermediates. To over-summarize, and say "do this over and over until you can do it without thinking", often works.

And I like the video technique itself, it's almost like that creepy eye is talking to you.

[Heroique]

...it’s almost like that creepy eye is talking to you.

Yes, kinda reminded me of Sauron’s eye from Lord of the Rings.

[Brian C. Miller]

"It's not about seeing," said the eyeball. ;) :D

[johnmsanderson]

"Moving in closer" was always good advice for me at the beginning, it taught me how to leave out extraneous stuff. As I got into LF, I started moving away as I began to think about larger prints and capturing more detail. Free's style is very close, I gravitate towards compositions that have a lot of space for the viewer to engage with. When I photograph on the street with MF I do tend to be more selective and narrowly focused as Free notes. It's cliche but one of the great things about different camera formats is just that -- each one describes a certain vision...

[Leonard Evens]

I'm sure this is helpful for a street photographer, but I don't see how useful it is for a large format photographer. Finding: important of course, and it helps to use a frame before setting up your equipment. Framing: see Finding, helps that we can use rise/fall and shift. Focusing: we don't have autofocus lenses in large format, we also have the added freedom provided by tilts and swings. Firing: this is hardly "automatic" for us, particularly if there is some subject movement.