Author Topic: Is it possible to entirely recreate a moment with a photo? (Read 1357 times)

voyager · « **on:** June 05, 2011, 01:53:20 AM »

And if not, why do you take it?

Em5 Pete · « **Reply #1 on:** June 05, 2011, 06:08:52 AM »

It depends..
Today, we have a "Fish Free" at all the state/county parks that have fishing. I will take photos of my family fishing as a keepsake mostly. To share with extended family and so on. It is more for showing the fun, the place we went, who was with us etc..

We can record a moment that represents the day. And also smaller slices of the day. Then, the photos combined can give a sense of the total day. That is way Scrap-booking is so popular I guess.

Recreate in one photo... probably not, Take enough photo's to have a gist, summery, more likely.

cosinaphile · « **Reply #2 on:** June 05, 2011, 06:54:31 AM »

i suppose the answer is yes.... sometime i shoot at 1\125 of a moment and sometimes i shoot 1\5 of a moment , [but those memories are sometimes fuzzy]

kidding aside, that is an excellent question , can a photographic moment be a full and true condensation of what that moment actually was ?

from where i stand,a good photograph , like poetry or like painting, a few well juxtiposed words, or well placed colors and values and shapes can go well beyond, what they seem, and thru aesthetic emotion , more fully excite or awaken human emotion in the viewer, and in the process, tell a story that goes beyond the tiny slice of time a photograph actually records.

i believe that when a piece of art , has a certain meaningful combination of elements then artistic emotions are touched by in a way that achieves depth and complexity but also accessibility, then something greater is reached ,and that synergy pushes the mundane and average in the relgnm of what we might define as art ....[or a powerful photo]

even a simple string of note can have a structure and a purpose to the ear and mind and bring us somewhere....but insert an off key note in the string and the spell is broken , the structure and the meaning and it effect diminished or erased i believe a good photo has the ppotential to tell completely of a moment and well beyond it .

in spite of my "definitions" i still find it a mystery why some images speak and some leave cold, there is a side that seems indefinable yet when it is there it unmistakable,
and true......

just sayin.....

truzziano · « **Reply #3 on:** June 05, 2011, 09:47:42 AM »

i don't think so: every art implies an interaction between two persons at least, and whatever you are feeling at shooting will not be the same thing the observer will feel....moreover, can you recreate the smell of a sunset at the sea thru photos?

lisandra · « **Reply #4 on:** June 05, 2011, 10:57:39 AM »

I think so. A moment can certainly be captured, with all the glory and emotion that moment has. A whole day or event, comprised of many moments, can be captured too, but just not one photo.

JonInKrakow · « **Reply #5 on:** June 05, 2011, 11:21:28 AM »

There's no way on this earth to recreate the immensity of the Grand Canyon, nor the grandeur--the eye-popping, jaw-dropping massiveness. Words can't do it justice, nor can any photo.... yet, I would never want to leave there without trying my hardest to capture what I can. Why? My desire to capture what little I can? We are wired by our Creator to wish to create or recreate. It's our nature. :-) An attempt to freeze in time something we experienced. There's a lot that goes into it, and I doubt it could ever be discussed to its depth, to be honest. But I bet we'll sure give it a try. ;-)

-Jon

rparmar · « **Reply #6 on:** June 05, 2011, 03:13:43 PM »

A moment can never be recaptured because you live it will all your dozens of senses, not just sight. And you live it without a frame around your view, with a rush of emotions and instant relating of all things experienced to your memories, with an embodied sense of who and what you are at that particular moment, with forebodings of the future and with everyone and everything around you.

Next to that, a photograph is nothing. I take photos to illustrate how impossible it is for them to be anything other than a misleading fragment.

And sometimes I take them just for fun.

voyager · « **Reply #7 on:** June 05, 2011, 03:46:27 PM »

Quote from: JonInKrakow on June 05, 2011, 11:21:28 AM

There's no way on this earth to recreate the immensity of the Grand Canyon, nor the grandeur--the eye-popping, jaw-dropping massiveness. Words can't do it justice, nor can any photo.... yet, I would never want to leave there without trying my hardest to capture what I can. Why? My desire to capture what little I can? We are wired by our Creator to wish to create or recreate. It's our nature. :-) An attempt to freeze in time something we experienced. There's a lot that goes into it, and I doubt it could ever be discussed to its depth, to be honest. But I bet we'll sure give it a try. ;-)

-Jon

I have this problem frequently with the Golden Gate Bridge. It's simply impossible (well, maybe I wouldn't use that word) to make any photo if it look as big and amazing as it did when I was there, but that never stops me from trying.

I'm not really talking about accounting for the other senses, although I suppose they are important, I'm just talking about being able to recreate what you saw, as you saw it.

Em5 Pete · « **Reply #8 on:** June 06, 2011, 03:51:02 PM »

I think most subjects can have multiple "recreations" of the mood, or experience. I think the GGB is one of those. It can be Cold, Warm, Romantic, Hostile, etc. Voyagers many photographs already show many different viewpoints of the same bridge. Lighting, vantage point, included surroundings, all make for a different viewpoint IMO.

lisandra · « **Reply #9 on:** June 06, 2011, 05:50:30 PM »

I was thinking more of a moment in someones life or a happening of some sort. Like the happiness of a kid on Christmas morning. A place like the gran canyon simply evokes to much emotions on one's self that recreating it is quite impossible.

ChrisJ · « **Reply #10 on:** June 08, 2011, 01:07:38 PM »

It's the directors job to create 'moments, in film making, even iconic images from the guy who first used the term 'decisive moment' in photography, Bresson, was later forced to reveal that His famous image 'The Kiss' was staged when was later being sued for not having a model release and publishing the image. It transpired that the girl was his cousin and the guy was Her boyfriend at the time, the shot we all see was the third attempt.

This shot of mine is staged

Seagulls

I waited til the light was right and then sprinkled some fish onto the stone and shot the resulting mayhem.

I do take the point that moments are fleeting, and re-capturing them is difficult, but most every image you see on TV and in film is staged.

Chris

EDIT: Sorry the Kiss was Doisneau not Bresson.

cosinaphile · « **Reply #11 on:** June 08, 2011, 05:31:10 PM »

GOOD POINTS CHRIS

i knew there was something fishy about that great shot of the guklls at flikr

Is it possible to entirely recreate a moment with a photo?