Elegant snapshots

[koven]

Elegant snapshots

I call these snapshots because none were really set up I just pulled the camera out and snapped. I call it elegant because everything in the picture looks the way its supposed to look. Everything is in the right place and it almost feels staged.

thanks for looking

http://mrelllis.tumblr.com/


more snapshots here, not as elegant haha.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrelllis/sets/72157631234654836/

 

[charjohncarter]

I agree, besides being elegant in composition and feeling, it is elegant because it is a snapshot. I'm certainly not a expert on photographic classification, but 'street photography' is really snapshot photography, in my opinion. Here is one I did in 1965 (Ektachrome+Instamatic) that was just that a snapshot, but it does have a little more:

 

[Moto-Uno]

The Chevy 11 in the background is nearly identical to the one in my father in laws driveway!
Peter

 

[charjohncarter]

I drove that car all over the west coast in the middle 60s.

 

[koven]

I agree, besides being elegant in composition and feeling, it is elegant because it is a snapshot. I'm certainly not a expert on photographic classification, but 'street photography' is really snapshot photography, in my opinion. Here is one I did in 1965 (Ektachrome+Instamatic) that was just that a snapshot, but it does have a little more:

amazing pic....exactly what im talking about

 

[Rodchenko]

Looks like a Cindy Sherman.

 

[charjohncarter]

Rod, I would say I was trying for that, but nobody had heard of her yet. I hadn't thought of it but many of Cindy's images are like snapshots.

 

[Rodchenko]

Sure. I wasn't trying to imply you were copying her style. Not at all. It just has that mysterious air to it.

 

[Ronald_H]

Unfortunatey you cannot really try to get those shots. Its often a transient moment and afterwards you wonder what the f*ck just happened. I have a shot like that, it has an insane amount of views and favs for an amateur like me:


Suus & Anne, candid by Ronald_H, on Flickr

 

[starless]

I was always curious about the definition of "snapshot".
Obviously, most images taken by classic documentary photographers as HCB, Winogrand, Frank etc fall under this category.

 

[petronius]

Its often a transient moment and afterwards you wonder what the f*ck just happened.

This is a zen moment, a split second of satori and such a moment lets me stand thousands of my crappy pictures!

 

[Exdsc]

I was always curious about the definition of "snapshot".
Obviously, most images taken by classic documentary photographers as HCB, Winogrand, Frank etc fall under this category.

Photography is its own language. Trying to name photographs makes the viewer confused.

 

[Jamie123]

I was always curious about the definition of "snapshot".

I don't think anybody has a clear definition of it and it's a pretty useless term. We probably all associate the notion of the snapshot with the quick and intuitive as opposed to the slow and deliberate but the truth is that most of what passes as 'snapshot' is very composed very deliberately, like e.g. the family snapshot.

Not sure what "elegant snapshot" really means unless it's simply a euphemism for successful snapshot. It seems that the whole point in taking snapshots (or quick, unposed photos) is to get photographs that appeal to one's aesthetic sensibilities. You take the picture and if you're lucky everything falls in place.

But I think the main point of this thread is simply to showcase some photographs so i think it would probably better be suited for the Critique/Salon section of the forum.
FWIW I like some of the shots.

 

[Sparrow]

I get the snapshot bit, most of my photos are snapshots, but I don't see any elegance yet ...

 

[Exdsc]

A photograph is two dimensional, its compressed space, unless you carefully place everything in order the photograph can have distracting elements, like trees and poles growing out of people's heads or in this case the horizon intersecting with the subject in a tricky location... So, here is a question, do you think the horizon intersecting with the guy's neck is in the right place?

Sometimes its impossible to notice this stuff but that is why you should never reach any conclusions about photography "this is how its supposed to look" sort of deal. There is always something to learn and in fact the more insecure you're about the quality of your work the better, especially in today's world where everyone is a photographer.

 

[koven]

A photograph is two dimensional, its compressed space, unless you carefully place everything in order the photograph can have distracting elements, like trees and poles growing out of people's heads or in this case the horizon intersecting with the subject in a tricky location... So, here is a question, do you think the horizon intersecting with the guy's neck is in the right place?

Sometimes its impossible to notice this stuff but that is why you should never reach any conclusions about photography "this is how its supposed to look" sort of deal. There is always something to learn and in fact the more insecure you're about the quality of your work the better, especially in today's world where everyone is a photographer.

I'm my harshest critic as everyone should be, but interesting perspective.

 

[Sparrow]

I'm my harshest critic as everyone should be, but interesting perspective.

.... and rightly so

 

[gns]

A photograph is two dimensional, its compressed space, unless you carefully place everything in order the photograph can have distracting elements, like trees and poles growing out of people's heads or in this case the horizon intersecting with the subject in a tricky location... So, here is a question, do you think the horizon intersecting with the guy's neck is in the right place?

Sometimes its impossible to notice this stuff but that is why you should never reach any conclusions about photography "this is how its supposed to look" sort of deal. There is always something to learn and in fact the more insecure you're about the quality of your work the better, especially in today's world where everyone is a photographer.

I think the horizon is perfectly placed. There is a tension created there that ties the figure to the landscape he is observing and it's reinforced by the other horizintal lines of the shore, fence and boardwalk edge. I like this just the way it is. Good photo.

 

[f16sunshine]

I like this thread. Hope you don't mind I contribute a few of my interpretations of elegant snapshots based on the OP definition.

 

[NeeZee]

nice thread.
in winogrand's time they called it 'snapshot aesthetics' i think.
this is one of mine:


Untitled by NeeZee102, on Flickr