Some notes on photography aesthetics

Consider this photo:

Hombre - Mexico City, 2021

Photographs, all the photographs, are considered to be the product of 3 factors:

• Photographer’s intention

• Skills

• Appearance of the elements in front of the lens

Garry Winongrand said:

I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed [...]

But the same Winogrand recognized that:

[...] the photograph isn't what was photographed, it's something else.

Between the time of recognition of a photographic moment, of its potential for the actual shot, that is, when I press the shutter button, there is a certain amount of time that passes through my action and that of the camera. An instant, several instants, which can be infinities relevant to the result. Between the photographer's intention and reality there are variables that we cannot govern. For example, a sudden movement of the main subject or even something happening behind him, in the background. It is in that phase that the magic of the photographic moment takes place. That Kodak moment of Bressonian memory that makes the photo good.

I think that one of the aspects that I love most about street photography is that compared to portrait photography I do in my studio I am less governor of the situation. That challenge is something that I experience it as an immense pleasure. There is adrenaline that starts from that uncertainty, which I don't want to call fear of making a mistake. There is that combination of knowledge mixed with imperfection that only in spontaneously grasped situations can ensure the photographic experience.