Shutter Sisters

  • journal
  • about us
  • shop
  • 2020 DIY Photo Calendar
  • contact us

Get Closer

February 17, 2011 By Stephanie Calabrese

One of my favorite documentary photographers, Robert Capa, once said “If your pictures aren’t good enough, you aren’t close enough.” It’s true. And it’s not just about the positioning of your feet or your lens. It’s about tightening the distance of your relationship with your subject. The best way to improve your documentary photography skills with people is to focus first (and frequently) on the people closest to you. Watch them move. Study their gestures. Get comfortable creeping in close with a wide angle lens. Be silent. Move your body to craft the composition without disrupting your subject. Wait. Remain alert. Working in this way will teach you how to anticipate action and be quick with your click.

Sequence of Steps Before the Click: I propped my elbows on the bed and used my Nikon D3s with a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens on it’s widest 24mm setting and set the aperture to f/4.5 to let in a fair amount of light while retaining enough detail for elements in the field. I fired an external mount flash (Nikon SB900) tilted behind me at a 45 degree angle (and slightly off to the left) to soften the light. To capture the best quality image, I make every effort to shoot on the lowest possible ISO setting (200 in this case). After making an initial image or two with my f/4.5 aperture setting (with the default shutter speed designated by aperture priority mode), I moved to full manual mode and adjusted my shutter speed a bit to compensate for light. This image is one of 33 shot in that sequence. I knew, at some point, she’d lean in close.

Comments

  1. Kat says

    February 17, 2011 at 8:47 am

    LOL! My cat does the same thing, rubbing his face on our books as we read. This could be my son, reading the same book almost! Great image.

  2. Anne says

    February 17, 2011 at 9:06 am

    Thanks for explaining the process! That's really helpful.

  3. Kyla says

    February 17, 2011 at 10:47 am

    Adorable! This could be a scene at my house. lol Cats are such funny creatures. Love how you captured it!

  4. Doris says

    February 17, 2011 at 11:30 am

    I love this! Your patience paid off. Photographing kids and cats can be challenging individually, let alone trying to put them together. Nice.

  5. Ingrid says

    February 17, 2011 at 12:26 pm

    Funny… I was just playing around tonight with a photo of my cat that I took a few days ago:
    http://indigo2087.blogspot.com/2011/02/sammi.html

  6. Morgen says

    February 17, 2011 at 12:28 pm

    I love that it is one of 33 shots! Thank you for telling us that. I so many times get it stuck in my head that "good" photographers get it the first time. I know it's not true, just the crazy self-doubt lurking in the shadows on my head. Thank you again!

  7. Kristina says

    February 17, 2011 at 12:55 pm

    Robert Capa is one of my most favorite photographers as well. His work is simply stunning!!

  8. Allison McCafferty says

    February 17, 2011 at 1:15 pm

    I really struggle with using an external flash. I tend to use my 50 1.4 indoors, but then everything is pretty soft. I'd love to use a larger aperture and bring out the 18-200 VRII more often, but that would require a flash and I just don't feel confident using it yet….

  9. Kathy Hunt says

    February 17, 2011 at 1:33 pm

    What a beautiful image! I have heard similar about being "close"…the version I've heard says, when you're ready to take a shot, take two steps closer. This especially rings true with the old film cameras I use, as I don't really use zoom lenses.

  10. AnnGeeDee says

    February 17, 2011 at 2:35 pm

    I love this advice. Thanks for the quickie tutorial. Robert Capa is on my list of people to study this year on my 52 weeks of photographers project and can't wait to get to him.

  11. Beth says

    February 17, 2011 at 2:56 pm

    This is one of the things I love most about cats – wonderful capture. ๐Ÿ™‚

  12. Diane says

    February 17, 2011 at 3:35 pm

    Stephanie this is an excellent photo. So heartwarming and rich in storytelling.

  13. Jessica says

    February 17, 2011 at 4:16 pm

    That photo is adorable! This is what I get when I get too close to my cat. ๐Ÿ™‚
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/goaliej54/5371403321/

  14. Jess says

    February 17, 2011 at 4:22 pm

    What a great shot and so worth the wait. I love that our pets have such special bonds with us.

    http://jessicavescera.blogspot.com/2011/02/anticipating-next-move.html

  15. Sharon says

    February 17, 2011 at 4:52 pm

    Your picture made me smile immediately. How often have I seen my son in a similar position–with the same book, no less–and not grabbed my camera. And one of thirty three shots? I need to learn to stay with the subject. Thanks for the inspiration.

  16. Kimberly says

    February 17, 2011 at 5:36 pm

    It's comforting to know that others take 33 tries to get that perfect shot. People get annoyed with me snapping away but trail and error reaps rewards.

    http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-maz5ABOXRv4/TVy2eijtSPI/AAAAAAAABrg/No9tTGT2_Vk/s1600/-101.jpg

  17. Heather says

    February 17, 2011 at 10:28 pm

    what a sweet image…I am with some of the commenters above…this could be my house – my son, my cat and of course "that book!"

  18. Trude says

    February 18, 2011 at 4:21 pm

    SUCH a sweet photo! Love! Thanks for sharing ๐Ÿ™‚

  19. Alex says

    February 18, 2011 at 5:35 pm

    I love this photo so much, Stephanie. It's transcendent in the sense that I feel I'm RIGHT there. Your work is always so compelling.

  20. Teri says

    February 18, 2011 at 9:40 pm

    This is so true! I once had a teacher who told me that when you think you took the perfect photo, take another step closer and shoot again, take one more step closer and shoot one last time. You will see the most perfect picture then! Great advise!

  21. Valerie says

    February 18, 2011 at 10:41 pm

    I've been playing around with zooming in, but also cropping.
    http://journeyleaf.typepad.com/journeyleaf/2011/02/tai-chi-and-toddlers.html

  22. kath says

    February 19, 2011 at 1:10 am

    I am taking care of a cat for a few months. He is the perfect model for me and my new lens

    http://visionandverb.com/2011/02/no-longer-lost-in-translation/

  23. Tina says

    February 19, 2011 at 2:59 pm

    Love your photo, it brought back many happy memories. Sadly โ™ฅmy boysโ™ฅ have left home now.

    Thankfully the cats remain ๐Ÿ™‚

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/greenhillphotography/5231573841/in/set-72157625402036019/

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/greenhillphotography/5451628647/in/set-72157625402036019/

  24. zoe says

    February 20, 2011 at 5:20 pm

    love that shot!

  25. fix print head says

    February 22, 2011 at 4:50 am

    Its a nice post. I read it and enjoyed it. And i love the photo which is in this post. Thanks for the sharing this lovely photo.

  26. Sign making supplies says

    April 11, 2011 at 7:02 am

    Really thanks for sharing this post…That's really helpful.

  27. Sign making supplies says

    April 11, 2011 at 7:10 am

    Really thanks for sharing this post…That's really helpful.

  28. Oklahoma city roofers says

    December 24, 2011 at 11:34 am

    Thanks for such an interesting article here. I was searching for something like that for quite a long time and at last I have found it here.

search posts

the archives

Copyright © 2025 ยท Log in