the moments

I usually take pictures of people but never in pose. When I take my pictures I feel just a bit outside what’s happening even if I’m completely involved and absorbed by what ‘s in front of me. Many times I wait for the right moment, that happens mostly when people inside the picture area dispose naturally themselves, act, react in a way I feel “right”. I usually shoot then, and take average good pictures.

But when “the moment” is The One Moment I feel my heart like beating a little bit more frequently. I feel myself almost exposed. I fear to miss something if I don’t’ do something at that precise moment. I believe something may happen (people turning away, asking something to me, getting upset…). I sometimes have to get some little courage getting close to people taking their intimate moments. I react pressing the knob and usually nothing happens then, with my relief, but having gotten “the moment”. It’s usually a satisfaction in moods. It’s sometimes a satisfaction after developing the film. Only growing my feelings about life around me and consciousness about space dividing my camera from my subjects I get more frequent nice pictures. To have some new (for someone) ideas of “the moment” like the one I mean I warmly suggest to have a look at Richard Kalvar’s “Earthlings” edited by Flammarion.


About the picture I send you:
Those two men (due uomini) were alone and standing besides me with folded arms, sunglasses, looking straight in front of them. They looked like two mafia men or two body guards but there were too many people around walking or waiting for the bus (just there). I put my 90mm and crossed the street, meanwhile people disappeared for a moment walking by and just one woman decided to walk in, waiting for the bus as well. I raised the camera, moved a step back just to put her precisely besides the men and shot. In a second some other people got into the scene, the two men moved and everything disappeared.

It’s likely unnoticeable from the picture but that’s been a moment for me.

Photo and text: Paolo Saccheri