The Little Moments
Life happens in the little moments. In the moments of fleeting action — the brief smile, the here-we-go-again eyeroll, the painful grimace, the sharp look, the loving glance. It happens in the brief intervals when facades drop, when masks fall off, when gestures reveal true feelings. Life happens in the rare, short moments when we forget ourselves and become one with the scene unfolding in front of us. Those are the moments that defy vivid descriptions of how we felt, when our words fail to give color to what we witnessed. Indeed, it is in those little moments that we experience, in the most universal sense, love.
It is no surprise then that the photographs that most appeal to us, that pull us in for a second glance, that make us linger on the image a few seconds longer, are the ones that capture the little moments, moments that are at once utterly mundane and full of meaning and expression — laughter, love, violence, despair. And speaking of despair, what better image than Dorothea Lange’s iconic Migrant Mother image of the Depression era which perfectly captures the despair of folks eking out a living and trying to cope with the hardships. That image is by no means a ‘little moment’ image, encapsulating as it does the pain of an entire generation, but without the context of the Great Depression, it is a fine example of life’s little moment, a feeling, or rather, a state of being, all too routine for many a folk.
For most of us, pre-occupied as we are with the hurry and bustle of daily living, the little moments barely register in our awareness. But for the photographer those are the moments to be aware of. And he can only become aware when he is relaxed in mind and present in the moment. It is a gift to be present, to be able to see, to see deeply and with understanding. But it is also a skill that one can cultivate with patience and practice.
In this age of fast-everything, the photographer seeking to capture the little moments must begin by slowing down, by turning attention to the present moment. When you are on the prowl for a great shot, you might as well forget it. But when you are relaxed, when you are going with the flow of the present, the great shots will find you.