Planned vs spontaneous

<p>Out of curiosity, what percentage of your photography (non-commercial) is planned vs spontaneous? By planned, I mean that you mentally visualize the subject and composition and then go out and shoot what you've already "shot" in your mind. Do you have a tendency to shoot color vs. b&w in one situation or the other, or choose different equipment?<br>

For me, it's probably been 95/5 in favor of spontaneous. I'd like to get my planned shots percentage higher, if nothing else, to get more balance.</p>

<p>Mine are often a combination. The main planning I do, since I do portraits (not commercially) is who I'm going to shoot and what time we'll get together. I may think about locations in advance, depending on who the person is I'm shooting, sometimes spending time just going around town at different times of day to get a feel for new spots to try out. Often, we will start at some location and then go on from there, taking photos wherever it strikes us. I will then "plan" to the extent that I may ask the person to stop at a certain place to do shooting. So, they're not completely candid in the sense of a person not being aware I'm taking the photo. I allow for spontaneity even when I'm more direct in posing or placing someone. I'm always hopeful the person I'm shooting will interject themselves and also for our dynamics together to lead us places unforeseen. I try to allow for my mood to affect what I'm doing in the moment. I think (not plan) a lot about my overall photography and what I'm doing and expressing in creating a body of work. That has an influence on a lot of photos, but I wouldn't really say the individual photos are that planned. Sometimes I will plan to experiment with a particular technique or style.</p>

<p>Planning and spontaneity don't have to be at odds and can go quite well together. I might take spontaneous shots with no planning at all but I'm not sure I'd want to take planned shots with no spontaneity whatsoever.</p>

<p>I decide on color or black and white based on what I'm seeing through the lens or what result I see when I'm home. It's individual to each shot, unless I'm doing a series where I want some kind of consistency and let the series dictate that choice. I always shoot in color (digital) and then convert to black and white as desired or needed.</p>

<p>I think it depends on what degree of planning you're talking about. If you planned every aspect of the shot, then I do that never, since I'm mostly interested in documentary photography I would have to see into the future to be able to "plan" every aspect of the shot. Now, I do plan my shooting in terms of 1) when I go to shoot (this has a lot to do with weather and expected lighting conditions, but also specific times and dates are more active than others, and I have some experience in guessing when the streets of Helsinki might be busy with people, for example, or if there is some event), 2) what location I choose to go to, 3) usually I have at least some idea of what might be happening there, 4) and then I may have compositional ideas in the backburner that I can try, but ultimately I have to shoot what is happening there. And I wouldn't want it any other way. I'm not interested in making up a reality i.e. staging the shot in order to execute my idea. A large part of the charm of photography is that it in its own way depicts what was there at the time of the exposure, and this tells something about our world.</p>

<blockquote>

<p><em>"what percentage of your photography (non-commercial) is planned vs spontaneous?"</em></p>

</blockquote>

<p>My ratio is easily 1000:1.<br>

<br>

I have planned for as long as 2 years and taken 5 years to accomplish that elusive prized shot. On the other hand, an on-location "model" shoot might net a few hundred pictures with little more than psychological planning.<br>

<br>

Over the past few years has been the planning of a 2 hour total exposure of the <a href="https://www.google.ca/search?q=Andromeda+galaxy&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=B-toVJ__LIutyQTti4H4Dg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1440&bih=770">Andromeda galaxy</a> using amateur gear by solving every imaginable problem I can anticipate beforehand. The expectation is high since I won't have many opportunities to access dark skies, and the interesting part is, the more I plan, the more the challenges become apparent making the journey take even longer.<br>

</p>

<p>It's a target that has been successfully shot by many amateurs and some day I'll end up with my own drop-dead gorgeous picture, just not any time soon. <br>

</p>

<p>I plan for every shoot -- sometimes over a year in advance to get the right sun angle on location, etc. if I'm traveling to a location for a couple of days shooting. Even when I go locally for a couple of hours, I have planned shots in mind before setting out. However, just like combat, reality always intervenes. However, I do find the better I plan and prepare the luckier I am in getting the "grab" shot that presents itself. My ratio? Hard to tell. Every shot has some element of planning in it, some much more than others. However, I find that my shooting ratio has not really changed over the last fifty years -- it is about 5% that I'm really pleased with. The other 95% are basically cover or backup for the intended shot.</p>

<p>There definitely are elements in the photographic process for which I plan. I decide in advance where I want to go, what I want in terms of the general character of the subject matter, and occasional what camera settings to use. The rest is spontaneous, including the postprocessing.</p>

I usually don't "go out to shoot" as a planned activity. But I always have a camera with me and will make

spontaneous photos when I see something interesting when out. The exceptions are when I'm working on a project, which isn't very often, but very

much planned at the time. Or fleshing out a project idea for the future, where I periodically return to an

area that greatly interests me, and make photographs to get a feel for future project potential - I view

that as more opportunistic rather than planned.<P>

 

Here's an example of an unplanned spontaneous photo:

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<img src= "http://www.citysnaps.net/2014%20Photos/bluecoat.jpg"><BR>

<i>

San Francisco • ©Brad Evans 2014

</i>

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</center>

Here's a planned photo from a previous project:

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<img src= "http://citysnaps.net/2011%20photos/Edward.jpg"><BR>

<i>

San Francisco • ©Brad Evans 2014

</i>

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</center>

And here's a photo I made in an area that interests me a lot where there could be future project potential:

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<img src= "http://www.citysnaps.net/2014%20Photos/Ocean%20Beach%20copy.jpg"><BR>

<i>

San Francisco • ©Brad Evans 2014

</i>

<P>

.<P>

</center>

<p>Always planning, always. If you plan it's better chances to get better results. The other important thing is that my plans don't work every time.</p>

<p>For me the allure of photography is that it is an activity that I can do with more spontaneity than my work, or day to day obligations. It lets me use that other “side” of my brain, which feels good, and provides balance. For that reason, I simply take my camera with me whenever family or friends get together, or when I go for a bike ride with my dog. That’s the only planning. The rest is to photograph what comes up during these activities. I just adapt to the situation and look for opportunities to get interesting shots. I don’t direct anybody, but try to stick to being documentary in spirit, meaning I also feel it is important not to interrupt the other people’s activity by asking them to pose or look a certain way. I like it when they notice me and glance at my camera, but I quickly get the shot then retreat, leaving them to their activity. I’m often surprised and sometimes amazed at what I was able to capture, and that is very gratifying.</p>

<p>100/100. Do odds work that way? I dunno. I often go out planning to photograph one thing. Often I come home with something completely different, and often better than I'd planned.</p>

<p>When I'm riding the bus, I'm looking for <a href="/photodb/folder?folder_id=1067017">stuff like this</a>...<br /> <img title="Transient graffiti" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17846238-sm.jpg" alt="Transient graffiti" width="200" height="125" border="0" /><img title="Cowboy left" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17720779-sm.jpg" alt="Cowboy left" width="200" height="133" border="0" /><img title="Why are you wearing that stupid bunny suit?" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17722322-sm.jpg" alt="Why are you wearing that stupid bunny suit?" width="200" height="133" border="0" /><br /> <br />...but occasionally have the pleasantly surprising <a href="/photodb/folder?folder_id=1058319">opportunities for this</a>...<br /> <img title="Jaime" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17849037-sm.jpg" alt="Jaime" width="200" height="134" border="0" /><img title="Jaime" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17849035-sm.jpg" alt="Jaime" width="200" height="134" border="0" /><img title="Jaime" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17849036-sm.jpg" alt="Jaime" width="200" height="134" border="0" /><br /> <br />...or this...<br /> <img title="Freddie, on the #27 bus" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17847968-sm.jpg" alt="Freddie, on the #27 bus" width="200" height="134" border="0" /><img title="Freddie, on the #27 bus" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17847967-sm.jpg" alt="Freddie, on the #27 bus" width="200" height="134" border="0" /></p>

<p><br />Even when I go out to photograph <a href="/photodb/folder?folder_id=1064361">landscapes and oddities like this</a>...<br /> <img title="The little smoke and the allies" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17659504-sm.jpg" alt="The little smoke and the allies" width="199" height="132" border="0" /><img title="Rough landing" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17666258-sm.jpg" alt="Rough landing" width="133" height="199" border="0" /><img title="DSCF2430_DSCF2430_20140709__mushroom" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17810966-sm.jpg" alt="DSCF2430_DSCF2430_20140709__mushroom" width="200" height="133" border="0" /></p>

<p>...I may meet someone who offers an interesting diversion and moment of incalculable value to share artistic interests:<br /> <img title="Brian showing his sketches" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17785293-sm.jpg" alt="Brian showing his sketches" width="134" height="200" border="0" /><img title="Patrick" src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17891175-sm.jpg" alt="Patrick" width="200" height="133" border="0" /><br /> <br />"It's all good" may be an overworked phrase, but really... it's all good. As with fishing, there are no bad days fishing because the worst day fishing is still a great day.</p>

<p>My philosophy for photography is described by Hamlet:</p>

<blockquote>

<p>"We defy augury. There’s a special providence in the fall of a sparrow. If it be now, ’tis not to come. If it be not to come, it will be now. If it be not now, yet it will come — <em>the readiness is all</em>. "</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Some people plan, some people don't. Personally I don't but I know some who do. <br>

Why worry about what other people do? Just go shoot.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>Why worry about what other people do?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Ian, I took Paul to be <em>caring</em> about what other people do, not worrying. Caring is kind of a nice thing. This is a community of photographers. We share our thoughts. If we ask questions about what other people do and why they do it, it's not necessarily because we're worried about something. We may just be interested, wanting to get to know each other, wanting to learn from each other. In any case, that was the spirit in which I answered the question, regardless of how it was meant. I also enjoyed reading the answers.</p>

<p>It varies. Usually I begin with a plan but within that plan unexpected things happen and if I am lucky I capture that. I remember a street portrait session I set up with a friend - I got the shots I intended but suddenly a girl walked into frame and I hit the shutter release. That was the best shot of the roll.</p><div></div>

<p>Ansel Adams called it previsualization. I was fortunate to spend nearly a month in Yosemite with Ansel way back in the day. We went out nearly every morning (sometimes later) and I remember going to the same place several times and only once did Ansel have his camera set up. (His arthritis prevented him from doing much of the physical handling of the camera.). In that entire month, I think he exposed one sheet of film -- because the rest of the time the scene in front of the camera was not what he had "planned" for.</p>

<p>I spent a lot of time with the camera on a tripod composing this shot of some tree roots. I took a shot or two and then Lily, who accompanies me in all my outings, trotted by in the river. I reflexively took the shot, and it is one of my favorites.</p><div></div>

<blockquote>

<p>"I mean that you mentally visualize the subject and composition and then go out and shoot what you've already "shot" in your mind."</p>

</blockquote>

<p>That represents only one type of planned photograph. Between that and absolutely spontaneous shooting (or "reflex" shooting) is an area that I think a good number of us practice - an on location thinking and planning of a shot wherein the subject and conditions are analysed and decisions made on how to photograph it.</p>

<p>A rough guess in my case is that the first case (planned at home) represents about 10% of my work, the second of on-site planning and thinking accounts for a good 70% of it and the spontaneous case anywhere from 10 to 20% of all photographs.</p>

<p>As you asked for percentages, that is how the three modes work for me. Spontaneous is the type of image I might realize quite quickly based upon a feeling but likely also based upon prior experience and how my visual memory interacts with a subject in a very short interval.</p>

<p>The roughly 70% of the on site "planning" or thinking about what I want to do can be quite extended in time or fairly short (a minute or so) and I think that that type of photography, namely - perceiving an interesting subject - deciding what it tells me - thinking about how I want to portray it - analyzing the compositional possibilities and objectives (aims), including B&W or color - angles and light effects - what I want to say in making the image - is the type of photography I often find most rewarding.</p>

<p>Planning photos at home before going out is much less frequent and relates mainly to themes of a series I may be doing or re-shooting a subject previously photographed or perceived but needing an improved interpretation. Equipment is usually what I have on hand and which I make the best of (it's the why and what I shoot rather than the tools), as on-site perception and interpretation of a subject are more important.</p>

<p>Photo planned before going out and also on-site (chairs and tall grass planned)</p>

<p>Planned photo (at home)</p><div></div>

<p>Photo planned on location (not before going out)</p><div></div>

Super photo, Steve

<p>Spontaneous photo (Ultrawide angle already on camera - the effect of position and light placed me in a small trance, and the subject captured instantaneously without great thought).</p><div></div>

<p>I recall something said earlier (I think it was from Fred) about choosing black and white (conversion, at the moment of the shot or later) depending upon what he sees through the lens, or, alternatively, by deciding on that conversion later. While those are rational creative approaches, I often add to them the desire to photograph in B&W before actually starting the shoot and seeing the various subject matter. It may be the result of a theme I'm pursuing, or the type of subject matter and atmospheric conditions I will see during that outing.</p>

<p>Sometimes the intention to photograph in B&W is subject and composition dependent, using the B&W medium for its particular graphic qualities or for opportunities of more enigmatic portrayal of the subject. As a parallel film photographer (although that has decreased in recent times) I will shoot digital much like I shoot film. In that sense I often previsualize the effects of using optical filters (red, yellow, blue, green, orange) to alter the chromatic balance and the eventual panoply of grey tones recorded in B&W. I will just as often simulate those desired tonal effects of filtration in post exposure by RAW color balancing if it is inconvenient to use filters, or I am just a bit lazy. Thinking in B&W includes that aspect, as well as other elements, such as chiaroscuro, low key, high key or the reflective qualities of subject matter. </p>

<p>It is mainly during my relatively small percentage of completely spontaneous shooting that I may at a later stage decide that the image would be better in B&W. Otherwise I don't care about exploring that conversion later, as I have already a good idea when I shoot in a more intentional or planned manner the nature of the image I want to create. Any spontaneity that occurs then in that otherwise planned scenario is often the result of a feeling that some different compositional or emotional value merits being (instantaneously) captured, but it is hard to attribute that to thinking and more to the guidance of one's visual memories.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>It's a combination. No matter how much I plan, there are always surprises. Sometimes the best images come from adapting your plan to what happens rather than trying to force your original vision.</p>

<p>I love working with human subjects. When they do something that I didn't expect, I might say, "Hold that!" or "Do that again! That was cool!" Sometimes, I even ask them to "do something spontaneous." I chose the setting, the lens, the lighting, etc., but we end up with shots that I couldn't have imagined. The ability to capture those surprising moments is part of the unique charm of photography.</p>

<p>If I <a href="/photo/17835657&size=lg"><em><strong>happen to see a subject that I like</strong></em></a> and I have the camera with me, then I either take the picture then or move around until I have a good angle on it. That is often about the extent of my planning, but there are exceptions.</p>

<p>If I spot a good subject but do not have a camera with me, then I might plan at least the time of day during which I want to try to capture it. I often drive around looking for old houses or buildings to shoot (typically at night), and I do work on the angles and lighting (typically natural) in my head while doing that. <a href="/photo/15721012"><em><strong>Some subjects I will drive by many times</strong></em></a> before finally deciding to bring the camera and complete the shoot. I usually have the tripod with me (in the trunk of the car) but often do not use it, especially if I am carrying a low-light camera. I like to shoot the street after a rain, and so I sometimes plan around the weather as well as the lighting. (The link just above is to one that would not have worked nearly as well with dry pavement.) I love wet pavement at night--and <a href="/photo/14326572"><em><strong>SOMETIMES DURING THE DAY!</strong></em></a> Therefore, for me, planning is also about paying attention to the weather, <a href="/photo/16696132"><em><strong>phases of the moon</strong></em></a>, etc.<br /> <br /> Sometimes I shoot <a href="/photo/17505721"><strong><em>totally spontaneously</em></strong></a> and hand-held, if I have a camera with me and I have good lighting and a good angle--or if I am carrying a low-light camera. <a href="/photo/17902181"><strong><em>This one</em> </strong></a>I saw from the street as I drove by but did not have the camera with me. By the time I got back with the camera, the shadow had moved up, and so what I got was not as good as what I had seen. The <a href="/photo/17902156"><em><strong>following shot</strong></em></a> was seen and shot about the same time.</p>

<p>If I am <a href="/photo/12002274"><em><strong>shooting at night</strong></em></a>, I will plan more--and part of my planning will be about a possible escape route if the neighborhood is not safe. Usually, though, if the shot is <a href="/photo/17878411"><em><strong>potentially good</strong></em></a>, I will go ahead and shoot regardless of the risks (within reason), even if that entails setting up a tripod and thus making a quick getaway almost impossible. Sometimes I shoot very late at night, after most people have gone in or iit has gotten cold. I feel safer that way in many instances.</p>

<p>If I want to shoot in the rain, that will often take more planning as to how to shoot without getting the camera wet, etc. I obviously don't have a fixed set of procedures. I try to keep at least one tripod in the trunk of the car, but due to our humid weather in the Southeast I don't ever leave a camera there. I need to buy and carry a smaller camera so that I can do what I like best: shoot spontaneously when the subject appears in a good light. Oh, the light I have missed from not carrying a camera with me!</p>

<p>--Lannie</p>

<p>Arthur,</p>

<p>Love that shot! :)</p>