To what extent is Henri Cartier Bresson’s theory of the ‘decisive moment’ a true representation of reality?

To me, photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as of a precise organization of forms which give that event its proper expression
– Henri Cartier-Bresson, “Foreword”, The Decisive Moment (1952)

What does photography really capture? Is it the essence of a moment? Is it the emotions of a scene? Or is it simply just an image? Photography as an art is such a subjective genre. Within photography, there is a multitude of different styles of how images are presented, for example, portraits, landscapes, documentary etc. Even these categories have different approaches that can be taken. My project focuses on the documentary style photography. But what actually is it? Documentary photography is a way to tell stories through only an image, it portrays the contrasting lives of the ordinary people around us. Documentary photography can be seen in many different forms such as street photography, photojournalism, reporting and others. My investigation will consist of exploring and documenting the same people/ groups of people, my friends and family – socially and isolated, but in different environments and situations. Although my images will use the same subjects, the photographs will be portraying the different parts of their lives, and in some way reflecting who they are, which is the narrative of my project. I have decided to take my images in the documentary style because I find that these images are the most authentic, however the reason I will be photographing only those close to me, rather than outsiders like street photography does, is to add a personal touch to my project. This way, my images will have consistency as well as being captivating, with each photo you will discover and learn more. This project discusses street photography, photographers whose work is based on street photography, as well as my own interpretations and my own photographs produced. To take good documentary style photographs, you need to be able to observe the environment you are in and decide what would be the shot that will capture people’s attention. This means ensuring the composition, the light, the atmosphere of the scene are all what would make the most aesthetic, perfect image. This process of image making is known as the ‘decisive moment’ by Henri Cartier-Bresson.

Henri Cartier Bresson was a well-known, French artist and photographer, best known for his candid photographs and street photos. Cartier-Bresson grew up in France with a wealthy family and from an early age, was introduced to the arts. This led to his first interest in painting until he discovered photography. Then his passion was solely photography, he saw it as an extension of drawing and an extension of the eye as he could capture exactly what he was seeing. He also used the description, “like hunting but without the killing”, to describe the art of photo taking. He then went on to travel around Europe and Africa to dive into other culture. Which then inspired his view of life which became ‘photography isn’t just about images; it’s about capturing the essence of existence’. This helped him to form his philosophy of the ‘decisive moment’. The decisive moment is the point in time where an image builds itself, where all elements and components come together, the scene is the exact right shot, so you shoot.

Henri Cartier-Bresson Behind the Gare St. Lazare1932

This photo, by Henri Cartier-Bresson, was taken behind the Gare St. Lazare, train station. The image miraculously captures the moment that this man jumped over a puddle of water. Because the man is mid leap, in the air, it is as if the photograph was planned, it almost seems too perfect. However, as we know from Bresson’s line of work, it was not planned which makes the image all the more intriguing. The background and foreground of this shot are also part of the reason that the image is as good as it is. Things such as leading lines, balance, framing and rule of thirds also make this image what it is. The leading lines in this photo can be seen going horizontally, along the gate and the reflection of the gate in the water. The positions of the leading lines guide you your attention, subconsciously to the leaping man as he is in between. Another aspect of the image which leads you to look at the focal point of the image, is the amount of negative space at the top and bottom of the image, this shows that there isn’t too much going on in the image, overbearing the viewers. Also, due to the puddle anything in the background of the image, is reflected causing a symmetrical middle ground to the image. The rule of thirds also adds to this image, this is because the man is in the right side of the frame separating him from other things going on in the shot but also, he is travelling in the same direction adding to the total composition.

I think that the theory of the decisive moment is a clever way of image making, this is because the images that are being produced from it, capture people in moments of ignorance, they are unaware they are being documented, or they are but they are caught off guard keeping their behaviours unchanged. Because of their unsuspecting state, this means the snapshots of them are all natural with no manipulation, making the images seem so genuine causing them to be intriguing. Since you don’t learn anything about what is really happening, you are left with questions that you ponder on or even make up the answers to in your head, making your own storyline to the image. Because of these reasons, I believe that the decisive moment is a true representation of reality as the photographs produced are candid shots, no staging, no manipulation, just the scene and the camera, adding a sense of vulnerability.

Tom Wood has a variety of projects around street photography, photographing people on the street, in pubs, clubs, markets, buses, essentially, anywhere, and everywhere. Wood’s photos portray moments which have not been interfered with or staged, they are all naturally occurring images, meaning they are an authentic representation of the people in the images. Tom Wood spent a lot of his times taking the bus, which is what prompted him to take some of his best-known images. He would sit on the bus and shoot images of the strangers sharing the bus with him or of strangers out of the windows shooting pedestrians, buildings, traffic etc. When describing how he would take his images, Wood said, “I don’t think about it. The whole point is not to think – but more to feel, to be open”. This was his way of having the confidence to photograph these people he never knew, and to get his images pristine.

Tom Wood differs from Henri Cartier-Bresson’s style, the decisive moment, as he described his image making style by saying “I would just put up the tripod, open the lens and then wander around with a flash gun, not knowing how the photographs would turn out”. Whereas the decisive moment is about choosing when to shoot, paying attention to the details and shooting when the scene in front of you is the perfect image. Rather than looking through the lens, observing the details, Tom Wood would shoot quickly and whether or not the shot was good, would depend on chance.

For this project, my photographs are being captured using a mix of both Tom Wood and Henri Cartier-Bresson’s strategies of photography. In most cases, I follow the theory of the decisive moment, I observe my scenery and shoot the image when I think all components have come together. Although, in some environments, I will take a photograph of what is in front of me without looking through the lens for long, I will watch what is happening and take images and decide after the shoot if the photographs turned out how I had hoped.

The second artist I have taken inspiration from is Andrew Kung, whose work is centred around portraying the lives of Asian American people. His specific project that has inspired me is ‘Dreaming on the Hudson’. The photographs from this project are documentary style, capturing the activities of young Asian men. The photographs produced in this project are staged situations of the men, plastered around in different settings of the Hudson River. Although the images were taken in the same location, Kung explored all of the different areas around the Hudson, allowing each individual photograph to be unique in its own way. For example, there are images in a field, the water’s edge, grassland etc. Even though the images are staged, they are taken in a documentary approach as the subjects don’t engage with the camera directly, they let themselves be documented.

Kung’s work and manner of shooting images differs from Henri Cartier-Bresson’s theory of the decisive moment, while sharing little similarities. Unlike the decisive moment, where the images produced are about the unpredictability of the moment, Kung’s image making is the opposite. The photographs are of arranged scenes, creating a cinematic feel to them. Although Cartier-Bresson’s images can have the same feel, his images can also be described as more chaotic, as they are captured in a moment of time that may not be captured again. Another difference between their photography style, is that Andrew Kung’s work is reflecting a message and meaning – “Through my images, my aim is to normalize Asian American beauty, belonging, and individuality.  I often investigate themes of masculinity, family, intimacy, and what it means to be American“.

In my own project, I have taken inspiration from the aesthetics of Kung’s images, rather than his message, and have my own meaning behind the images. My aim is to highlight the idea that every individual has their own unique life, and to show a snippet of the lives of those close to me. The photographs taken of my friends are the ones that most reflect Andrew Kung’s images. This is because of the locations used and also due to how I have presented them in the images. In contrast to Andrew Kung, the majority of my images are not staged, I observed my friends socialising as normal, and shot images of them, apart from a few times where I directed them to perform a certain action to capture a better shot.

To conclude, I think that Henri Cartier-Bresson’s theory of ‘the decisive moment’, can be considered as a true representation of reality to a large extent. This is because, what the camera captures in the moment, is the exact scene in front of you. In terms of Cartier-Bresson’s photographs, it is a true representation of reality as he is not manipulating the images, they are authentic. Similarly, Tom Wood’s photographs, even though he didn’t shoot his images with the decisive moment in mind, in certain ways, both techniques share similarities, causing Wood’s work to also be a true representation of reality. However, Andrew Kung’s project consists of staged images, creating a false reality on the surface, but the true reality of the image is the meaning behind it. When taking my own images, during the photoshoots I would take multiple images while a scene unfolded in front of me, the final images produced are the ones where all of the components came together. As discussed previously, my images and procedure of image making have similarities and differences with Henri Cartier-Bresson’s as well as Tom Wood and Andrew Kung. In summary, I followed Cartier-Bresson’s theory of ‘the decisive moment’ to a certain extent, as I ensured all elements of the image were at their prime when taking the image. With Tom Wood’s photographs, my images share similarities in the sense that they were all documentary images, even though Wood didn’t prioritise that the style of his images were documentary, I recorded the lives of those close to me and he reordered the lives of strangers in his town. Although, the difference between my work and Wood’s is that his work is street photography, whereas my work is less of that. Finally, my work is similar to Andrew Kung as a big part of my work is focussed on my friends who are youthful, like the people he photographed in ‘Dreaming on the Hudson’, also I find that the appearance of my images are similar to his. Oppositely to both Tom Wood and Andrew Kung, my final images are presented in black and white, whereas their photographs are bold and bright in colour. Each of these artists have a different approach to photography, and a different reason behind their work. In spite of this, in some sense, they all portray reality through their image, which is what my own photographs are intended to do.

Bibliography: 

Documentary photography

Bull, S. (2009), ‘The Photograph as Document’ in Photography. London: Routledge.

Bate, David (2016) ‘The Art of the Document’ in Art Photography. London: Tate Galleries.

Henri Cartier-Bresson and the Decisive Moment

 overview of Henri Cartier-Bresson and his theory of the decisive moment at ICP (International Centre for Photography) in NYC.

https://www.fractionmagazine.com/the-decisive-moment

Tom Wood

https://www.studiointernational.com/index.php/tom-wood-i-started-doing-portraits-of-these-kids-hanging-around-on-drugs-photie-man-walker-art-gallery-liverpool

https://www.lensculture.com/books/8975-tom-wood-bus-odyssey

https://www.lensculture.com/tom-wood#:~:text=Although%20Wood%20photographed%20working%20class,extensive%20viewing%20of%20experimental%20films.

Andrew Kung

https://www.lensculture.com/articles/andrew-kung-dreaming-on-the-hudson

https://www.apkung.com/dreaming-on-the-hudson

https://lenscratch.com/2021/05/andrew-kung