A Simple Yet Absolute Truth

[ABERS]

Thumbing through a photographic magazine  the following caught my eye.

"The most powerful tools at your disposal are your eyes, and it's  only by using them and  thinking  about what you're  doing that your  compositional skills will improve."

It may strike as a simple and basic  concept but sometimes it is one that is totally ignored when in your excitement  to capture the image, you hurriedly  press the shutter.   Perhaps it is only second to 'remember to take the lens cap off.' 

[Oldboy]

That's very true for most shots. On other occasions you need imagination to see a shot before it happens, if you wait until you see it then you've missed the shot. Think fish jumping out of water or bird catching insect in the air. 

As for the lens cap, I take it off when I hang the camera round my neck. 

[Cabbyjohn]

As a novice, (Very novice) "photographer" I agree with both comments. I gave a cousin of mine one of my old Bridge cameras, and we often go out taking photographs together. I noticed time after time that even though we were standing fairly close together taking shots of the same scene, her shots were often better than mine. I used to say, "She had the eye". This made me determined to up my game. I now take much more care in preparing to shoot, whereas before I invariably took the shot and relied upon post editing to rectify my mistakes. Which leads me to ask? Has the introduction of good photo editing software made us careless when composing our shots. Or is it just me? 

[Hinfrance]

I really have to work at the 'eye' part. It does not come to me naturally.

On the other hand photo editing software is as important to me now as the darkroom was in prehistory. Personally I always try to think not only of the elements of the image I am about to capture (and often it will be one from an idea I have visualised that I have tried to recreate) but also the way in which I will edit it to present it afterwards.

I have made the analogy before, but for me photography is like music - when you think of a tune you also think of the instruments and the arrangement that will suit it. It's about thinking the whole thing through. Unless it's record shots, of course, in which case I just snap away and hopefully get the occasional special shot in amongst all the priceless memories.

[DigiDiva]

My images never look as good as what my eyes see

[Carlj]

Not sure whether it's because I find work ultimately irritating, or that I use photography as a buffer against my depression, but I find myself visualising shots.

As I shoot predominantly portraits and gather props like magpies gather shiny things, I see what I want to create in my head, usually the particular model for the shot too. The image I posted of Paige was all her from the moment I ordered the hairband. The shot of Jayde with the retro sunglasses was a completely different model, though the image was close to what I wanted.

I'd like to say my eye is getting there!

Carl

[ABERS]

There are certain genres where the photographer  is, or should be, in complete control, and Portraiture is one of them. Lighting and pose together with background and accessories usually make up the whole.

I think the original quote referred to "seeing" a picture within the surroundings you  find  yourself with no opportunity to pre  plan or arrange the subject.

As Howard says, the use of post processing and the opportunity  it affords to allow the 'eye' to see that little bit further to provide an image that is a bit different and not run of the mill.