APOGEE PHOTO MAGAZINE: Decisive Moments: Making Waves – Motion in Photography by Bill Miller

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Decisive Moments: Making Waves – Motion in Photography

By Bill Miller

Every time I take a camera on a walk, I’m haunted by the idea of motion. More specifically, in one frame, I want to capture the beauty in and of nature’s motion. Still photography alludes to motion, and, traditionally, short and long exposures are used to stop or blur it. However, what I’m talking about lies beyond technical solutions. Instead, the answer rests in the photographer’s creativity.

The Blur

A longish (to long) shutter speed will slow a waterfall, blurring the water’s motion into a cottony or finely sculptured flow. Conversely, a very short shutter speed can stop every drop. A blur of a waterfall or stream ripples is a primary component in nearly all photos that include waterfalls or streams. To capture that kind of motion, student photographers should test shutter speeds of one second through 1/15^th of a second to see what they like.

Stopping Action

Stopping action is a very different technique. Whether you’re shooting the action of sports or a windswept field, you must capture a “decisive moment” while stopping the motion to make a great photo. A good photo stops the action and tries to show a relationship. A great photo does that and more, capturing the moment when all elements--from light through composition--come together. Use a short, 1/500 through 1/8000 of a second to stop and capture sports or wildlife action.

(Note: You can also extend the camera’s shutter speed by using a high-end flash system that bursts light at greater than 1/100,000 of a second, but that’s another story.) If you experiment using shutter speed as a variable that you control to show action, you can master the technique and make good photos. If you want to extend your creativity, access locations and sporting events in which you can take pictures close up, shoot a lot of film, and experiment with “stopping action.”

Capturing Action’s Tracks

A third way to explore motion with a still camera is less technical and far more invested with creativity. Seeing motion in the tracks made by wind, natural formations, or repetitive patterns and translating that to color or black-and-white film is another way to capture action. Using this approach won’t guarantee that you’ll capture movement and/or create art. It’s only an idea. The success of the final image still relies on your vision and creativity. Nonetheless, “action tracks” represent the kind of motion I concentrate on trying to create.

One of my favorite photos is long grass blown by the wind over a terrain that makes the field look like an ocean with waves breaking on the rocks. To many aspiring photographers, such a field would look like only so much grass, but to someone with patience, a personal vision, creativity, and a compelling interest in abstract forms, the grass becomes more than itself. In fact, it becomes more than motion. It becomes the essence of motion.

To some, this kind of vision of movement comes easily. To others, it doesn’t. From the first moment I picked up a camera, I began to see form, design, and motion. If you don’t see art around you right away, don’t worry. You can. First, calm down and be patient. Second, learn to see beyond the obvious. Third, become involved with a peer support group or camera club with the same general interests in photography that you enjoy. Finally, keep shooting until you get it.

Bill Miller is a photographer, teacher and writer. He is the founder of PhotoTreks and conducts workshops in the Oregon area. You can learn more about Bill and his workshops by going to www.empnet.com/imageworks/PTREKS/

Travel the Blue Highways of Central and Eastern Oregon as you learn photography and develop your own personal creative vision. Learn photography in locations that will inspire your creativity and excite your senses. To see what we have for you, visit: http://www.empnet.com/imageworks/PTREKS/ For stock photography of Central and Eastern Oregon visit Central Oregon Photos at; http://www.empnet.com/imageworks/COSTOCK/ Contact us at: imageworks@empnet.com