"A Fellini Moment" by Stephanie Bennett Vogt
“This moment deserves your full attention, for it will not pass your way again. ”
–Dan Millman
When I was ten I got my first camera – an Instamatic with the flash “cubes” that you inserted at the top and discarded after four flashes. Many cameras later – from chunky single reflex cameras to my now streamline iPhone, I continue to capture my world everywhere I go.
The other night as I watched a film about my most favorite photographer: Henri Cartier-Bresson, I was reminded why I love this art form so much. For me it has very little to do with being technically savvy or proficient, and more about being in the moment and “feeling it.”
When I see something that moves me, I click. Framing the shot seems to come naturally. Sometimes I’ll click on a feeling and have no idea what I got until I download it onto my computer – like my “Fellini Moment” above, which I shot while in Italy last year.
Taking pictures for me is about capturing the exquisite essence of a single alive moment: knowing when to click, letting go when the moment is gone, and trusting that there will be many more juicy moments to come. Like living life on the “awake” setting.
The Cartier-Bresson documentary that I mentioned is a visual and auditory delight! Watching it is like sitting at the foot of a master: you hear him talking about his photos (which he holds up for you to see), the art form itself, his subjects, and his extraordinary life traveling the world: i.e. Mexico in the 30s, India in the 40s, Paris in the 50s, 60s and 70s… He even shares a prescient conversation he had with Mahtma Gandhi just moments before Gandhi was assassinated. It’s a real trip.
And if that isn’t enough, you will hear some of the best Bach and Mozart music in the background to create an experience that is both transporting and evocative.
If you could use a little lift, consider adding “Henri Cartier-Bresson: The Impassioned Eye,” to your list and moving it to the top of the queue on Netflix.
Photo: “A Fellini Moment” by Stephanie Bennett Vogt
