Chasing light. I’m certainly not the first to think of it like this. It is, however, the lighting defines the moment.
When I first trying to understand photography, it was clear that it came down to composition and finding the right light. Composition is easier; even if you don’t get it quite right, you can always crop things later on. Not that composition isn’t important, but it’s easier to adjust after the fact.
But, the light. It has to be right at the instant the image is captured. Light can be manipulated with artificial lights, a flash, a filter. In most situations outside a study, these can only influence things so much. Jim Brandenburg’s book, Chased By The Light: A 90-Day Journey (Northword Press, 2001), cemented this concept as central. Front and center, right in the title: Chase. Light. I feel he got the order wrong; the photographer is seeking the perfect light. The book documents a self-imposed challenge of one photography per day for ninety days. One exposure, a single click of the shutter, one moment to capture a day. With each image, he found the perfect light. Or the light found him. Either way, in a single image, it may be made or destroyed by the lighting.
Light is always changing. Moment by moment, it changes. The nine images in “Chasing Light” were captured between 8:14 pm and 8:38 pm on a single day. This is most obvious at sunrise and sunset, where 30 minutes is the difference between dark and light. These images are not adjusted (beyond cropping). The apparent lightening of the sky reflects the camera’s adjustment of the exposure. As the singular brightness of the sun slips behind the horizon, the background colors come to life. As the angle changes, the appearance of the water changes. Different colors and characteristics arise and fade away. All the same scene, but different images. The only change? the light.
No two moments are the same in the stream of time. Liquid light courses over and around us, affecting how we see the world.
Early on, I was drawn to black and white photography. At the time, I would have been hard-pressed to explain why. Now that I have had decades to consider why, it is because the influence of the light is so very obvious. Black and White photography distills the image to its essence; the light and its absence.
In considering your view, consider the light. Consider the colors, the shadows, and the progression throughout the day. Chase the light. If you blink; if you hesitate; the moment is lost.