I kind of liked this picture, and the rest of the photo essay on the (lately) much covered Cuba is quite good, just the same.

http://digitaljournalist.org/issue0203/dt11.htm

-- Mani Sitaraman (bindumani@pacific.net.sg), March 13, 2002

Answers

Thank you, Mani. This is really good.

-- Bill (bmitch@comcast.net), March 13, 2002.

I like all of the images. However, they were made with a Sony digital movie camera. These are all just selected, single frames from that effort.

Wonderful nevertheless.

-- Jim Tardio (jimtardio@earthlink.net), March 13, 2002.

Is it really a "decisive moment" when you're pulling stills from a DV camera. At 24 fps, that's a lot of stills to choose from.

Nonetheless, I liked the stills a lot and would be interested in seeing the movie.

-- Richard (rvle@yahoo.com), March 13, 2002.

You still need the eye to frame and select the moments.

-- rob (rob@robertappleby.com), March 13, 2002.

Rob, I agree. His framing is impeccable. The composition is great. I am a fan of his photography (plus, he's a nice guy). I guess my point is I don't necessarily agree with Mani that these photos represent the "decisive moment living on" since he's basically shooting what amounts to thousands upon thousands of photos and then pulling the individual frames chosen here. Is it really capturing the decisive moment (ala HCB's definition) when you're just continuously shooting. I don't know, perhaps my idea of capturing the decisive moment" should be rethought. Am I making sense? Or am I talking out of my ass?

-- Richard (rvle@yahoo.com), March 13, 2002.

Richard-

I agree, framing and composition are one element of good shot. But in the truest sense of the definition of "decisive moment", using a movie camera or a motor drive is cheating to me. Seriously, anyone can pick the "moment" from a bunch of frames.

-- jeff (debontekou@yahoo.com), March 13, 2002.

I think it's interesting because it probably shows where photography will be going quite soon. I think the future of cameras is digital video capture at (name your favourite large number) Mpixels and editing after the shoot to get the decisive moments. If it gets good snaps, then why not?

-- rob (rob@robertappleby.com), March 13, 2002.

Rob, you could very well be right about the DV thing.

Just don't tell, allen.

-- Richard (rvle@yahoo.com), March 13, 2002.

Rob

You may be right, digital can solve everything. Yes, right and the moon is made of cheese.

-- Robin Smith (smith_robin@hotmail.com), March 13, 2002.

Actually, the last nine pictures in the series, including the one I posted a link to (the hopscotch/hula hoop girls) are NOT digital stills.

It is interesting though that there is a systematic difference in style/vision/angle of view between the two sorts of photographs.

Look again-what do you think, folks?

-- Mani Sitaraman (bindumani@pacific.net.sg), March 13, 2002.

I tried taking "decisive moments" using the still frame capability of a JVC DV camera. There was such a delay between pressing the button and the image capture that it was a total waste of effort. But it ain't cheating, any more than using a motor drive (click-uh, click- uh, click-uh...). It's just another technique for producing photographic images.

-- Bill (bmitch@comcast.net), March 13, 2002.

Robin, I wasn't expressing a preference, just what I think is pretty inevitable.

-- rob (rob@robertappleby.com), March 14, 2002.

It's cheating Bill. Press and hold. Get the shot? In the truest sense of the definition, it is cheating.

-- jeff (debontekou@yahoo.com), March 14, 2002.

Well it would be interesting to issue a challenge to everyone to use their digital video cameras (unfortunately i don't have one, ha!) for an hour shooting kids playing in their backyard tomorrow and select three still frames from that. I think the video frames on the site are very powerful, dynamic and good. I don't think just anyone could have come up with them.

If we hadn't been told how these shots were made, would anyone have noticed? I don't think so. In the end they're just pictures, and pretty damn good ones at that.

-- rob (rob@robertappleby.com), March 14, 2002.