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It is fatal to be 'fiddling' with gadgets
at a time when pictures are liable to be offered. Wherever possible,
meter readings should be made in advance. Train yourself to be aware of
lighting changes, adjusting the lens a stop or so one way or the other
as required. Even at the risk of making an error of exposure, put your
meter in your pocket and forget it for a while. More pictures are
missed because of a preoccupation with gadgetry than because of
technical miscalculations. Practice handling the camera controls until
they become almost instinctive. The press-photographer sometimes sets
his camera at a predetermined distance, say ten feet, and then
endeavors to keep this distance between him and his subject. This
method can be handy with children where the magic moment might occur
just as you are checking the focus.
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The advantages of the 35 mm. camera for
this type of child photography are obvious. But the twin or single-lens
reflex is preferred by some people for reasons that may not be so
obvious. For instance, these cameras allow you to observe the child
while you appear to be looking in quite another direction. You can even
turn your back on the child and operate the camera backwards under your
arm, or sideways at waist level. You can hold it above your head and
use it like a periscope to see over a crowd.
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The 6 x 6 cm reflex camera is more
difficult to conceal than the 35 mm. type. Perhaps the best way is to
have the camera on a neck strap resting on your chest and partly hidden
by a slightly open jacket. Automatic film transport and a quiet shutter
are highly desirable.
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The 'electric eye' camera which
automatically judges the brightness of the scene and sets the aperture
by means of it photo-electric cell will free you from the worry of a
technical failure, provided the limitations imposed by this method are
fully recognized. For instance, in ‘contre-jour' (against the light)
shots, since the exposure will be read over the entire picture area,
you are almost certain to get a silhouette of the child against a
strongly lit background. If this is not the effect required, it is
often possible to develop a technique of half covering the cell window
of the meter with a finger in order to increase the exposure for the
shadow detail of the face. But this is rather a 'hit-or-miss' method
calling for a degree of experiment.
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The ideal photographer of children by the
unseen method would obviously be able to render himself invisible. If
this is beyond your abilities, you can certainly help by dressing
conventionally and without eccentricities, working in a leisurely
fashion and keeping your camera out of sight until the very last
moment. If the child becomes aware of the camera pointed in his
direction, the best thing is to turn the camera away and go through the
motions of photographing something else. The child will soon lose
interest in you and return to his game. Occasionally the moment of
awareness makes the picture.
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Such an occasion was when Leopold
Fischer, a Viennese police photographer who has earned a considerable
reputation for salon pictures throughout the world, paid a visit to
Bergdorf Kals in East Tyrol on the occasion of a religious festival. He
noticed an attractive little girl in traditional costume, looking
diminutive between adults similarly attired. As he watched, the little
girl turned and looked enquiringly at his camera. Fischer took the
picture `mit blitzschnell', as he eloquently expressed it.
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The unseen photographer cannot exercise
any control over his subject. But he influences the result by choice of
angle, background, lighting and moment of exposure. To move the camera
a foot to the left or right, up or down, can profoundly alter the mood
or impact of the picture. The background should be unobtrusive, but not
necessarily blank. Often it is desirable that it suggest a natural
environment for the child, as long as this does not compete with the
main subject. Strong contrasts of tone and hard lines can be disturbing
in the background, especially when the child appears to have a plant
growing out of the top of his head or a window sill shooting into his
ear.
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A low camera viewpoint will sometimes
place the child against the sky.
The beach provides an effective un-cluttered background from a high
angle. Fussy backgrounds, such as with sunlight glinting on dark
foliage, should be put out of focus by choosing wider apertures, not
forgetting to give a compensating increase in shutter speed.
Differential focusing in this manner is often to be preferred with
close-up portraits, although in full- length work, the activities of
the child must he seen in relationship to the surroundings and
therefore depth of focus is necessary.
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