Steve Huff - How to add emotion and feeling in your photographs

I found an article online by Steve Huff that I found quite interesting and it was about adding emotion and feeling in photographs. I read it and it helped me thinking of how to produce my own work which is why I am going to post that article below. It has a lot of examples is it as well of what he actually means by whatever he is saying. I liked his own work as well because it looks quite natural and realistic as those are actual pictures taken on the spot and not planned shoots or emotions. Following is what Steve Huff has written about it.

So here I am on a sunny  morning wondering what the heck I am going to write about today. I feel like I am on a roll with the site. Traffic is up, my creativity is kicking back up into high gear, I am motivated, and I am looking forward to new and exciting things for the future. So…with all of this good stuff brewing, why is it that I have a hard time figuring out what to write about every day? Not sure, but one thing I do know…when I stop THINKING about it something usually comes to me!

I was going over some photos last night and the ones I were drawn to most were the ones in which some sort of emotion was captured in the photo. Im not a huge fan of posed photos, unless they are posed/candid at the same time. For my style of photography I prefer to capture “moments” just like many of the readers of this website do. Maybe why I love shooting Leica cameras so much. I feel they are kind of perfect for this type of photo. Sure a huge Nikon D3 could also capture emotion and a moment, but I do not want my wrist to kill me when I am out shooting for an hour on the street or just in every day use :)

Now I am not saying that a non-Leica can not capture emotion…not at all! I am even going to show examples here that were shot with the huge Canon 1DMKIV, which is an amazing camera. To me, any camera can capture that special moment, and capture the emotion. I just like Leicas for their size and I enjoy shooting a rangefinder. BUT I MUST ADMIT, That Canon MKIV was awesome to shoot a show with.

So how do we capture emotion in a photograph? Well, first we have to find a moment. Snapping a posed image of your cat or your kids will get you a nice photograph to frame, but if you try a little bit harder and take your time getting a more candid photograph then you may end up with something much more special. Onto some examples!

Here is an image I shot at a Seal concert. Sure, I took many shots of Seal and his band, but what about the audience? The audience is there to enjoy the show, to see their favorite performer, and they are part of the show as well! Some of my fave shots were taken of the crowd! This one I really like. I shot it with a Canon 1DMKIV and noticed all of these fans who were in awe of the man they were there to see. They were intense, they were having fun, and I wanted to capture it. A moment.

I sat there and waited until I found a moment I liked. I fired one shot, and one only. This was the result…

The woman on the left looking up excited to be there up so close, the person behind her clapping their hands, the man to the right taking video and his girlfriend to his right watching the performance. Then we have a guy about to take a drink but at the same time, never taking his eyes off of Seal. The man  to the right is just enjoying the show. There is so much going on in this photo, and its filled with a realness that packs it with emotion.

Another shot of the crowd but of one woman in particular who was absolutely LOVING the show. She was intense, never taking her eyes off of the stage. Singing every word, smiling, and just as happy as can be. I spotted her and watched her for a few minutes and snapped  the one image below isolating her face and smile from everything else. I did this by waiting for the moment and using a large aperture to make sure she was the main subject in this photo. I already had this envisioned in my head as my brain seems to tell my eyes to view things at F1 :) This was shot with a Leica M9 and Noctilux at f/0.95.

One more that I never published… Seal after 90-100 minutes of being on stage does a fist pump for the roaring crowd. At this moment he is enjoying the crowd as much as they enjoyed him. I wanted to capture the joy on his face and think I succeeded. Shot with the Canon 1DMKIV. Again, one shot and one shot only. Even with a DSLR I keep it on center spot focus, and single shot. I wait for the moments instead of hoping to get one out of every 100 shots I fire. That is the key…

Which leads me into a small rant about these rapid fire shooters who do that (rapid fire) with hopes they get a good shot. I was shooting a show once where the photographer next to me just kept firing away his Nikon D3and he must have shot 3500 images that night, where I shot 150. I just cant imagine sitting there and going through 3000+ shots after an event. NO WAY! Again, for me, it is all about waiting for the moment. Keep your eye through the viewfinder, and WAIT FOR IT. Visualize, then, fire one shot. You may not nail every single one but your keeper rate will be high.

So lets move on to more everyday situations. When shooting a concert we have tons of opportunities to capture feeling and emotion in not only the performance but also the audience. When out and about with your camera, how do you capture those candid moments or avoid posed pictures that everyone seems to do so well?

Well, first of all, don’t worry about the rules all of the time. Think outside the box, and always have your camera with you. This is where it pays to have something small like an Olympus E-P2, or a Panasonic GF1 or even a Leica M9  or especially a Leica X1 (its so small and light and the IQ is fantastic). With these cameras, you can easily concentrate on capturing “moments in time” instead of just the same old posed images.

THINK OUTSIDE OF THE BOX

Dont be afraid to get off angles, cut off heads, mis focus a bit. Sometimes images like these can be very thought provoking and mysterious. Take your shots when your subject is relaxed and may not even be aware you are photographing them.

Also, there are times when you can take a posed shot and turn it into a shot full of emotion. Here is one I shot about 10 months ago or so and my son was with his friend and I asked them to try on these 3D glasses that came with some horror DVD. The first few shots they sat there and smiled. I didnt want that, I wanted a natural reaction! So I started telling jokes and acting goofy. They loosened up and started laughing and having fun. I then got these two shots..

Another one where my son was posing so I put my camera down to my side, he thought I was done and he made this oddball face. This wasn’t posed but he didn’t even know I lifted the camera up to snap! This is more of a goofy moment but still, it is a real moment and not a faked one :)

My nephew John was on the phone in a deep discussion with his Father and had no idea I was taking his picture. Shot with an M9 and 50 Lux in low light at high ISO but it still works. He was worried about something and it shows in his face. It’s one of those serious moments which can also be quite interesting.

again, the key..have your camera, wait for it, and dont let your subject know! Raise the camera when you see the moment coming or it is there. My son…he is so used to me taking his pictures that he usually makes a mean face or raises his hand now but here, he had no idea I was going to take the pic! I was using a Sony NEX5 and had it down where I could see the LCD and since it was away from my face, he was just talking and laughing about something else. I snapped and caught his happiness at that moment :)

So the next time you are out shooting or just hanging around the house looking for something to take pictures of remember to wait for the moment. Snapping blindly will lead to dull photos. When it comes to people photographs, take your time and watch your surroundings. Keep an eye out at all times. Walk the streets and be on the lookout! You will usually come away with some great moments and memories.

I will leave you with a few more shots…