Assignment 4 Virtual Essay

Henri Cartier-Bresson

             I am going to discuss about my favorite French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908 - 2004). He is one of the great artists of the twentieth century, and considered as the father of modern photojournalism because he helped develop of the “street photography” or “real life reportage” style. Thus, his work is mostly portraits. He is famous for revealing through his photos the richness, the sensibilities, and the varieties of the human experience. Many of his pictures have been regarded as masterpieces; however he has chosen to remain virtually invisible. People said his work proved that photography is capable of faithfully reproducing reality; all you have to do is catch the right moment to show the people and surrounding world in all their happiness and unhappiness. [Biography]

             Before he became a famous photographer, he started his career as a painter. He attended the Ecole Fenelon ant the Lycee Condorcet in Paris from 1922 to 1923. During these years, he developed the visual training that would serve him as a framework for his later work as a photographer. He started travelled around the world through countries and continents. He visited Germany, Poland, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Provence, Italy, Spain, Mexico, America, India, Burma, Pakistan, China, Indonesia, Cuba, Canada, and Japan etc. [O'Hagan]

              Five photos I picked all have reflected his “real life reportage” or "street photography" style. Also, all photographer said they are inspired and learned how to take the decisive moment. The decisive moment means "le moment decisive", the right momentat which the elements in motion come together and are in complete balance. He said “To photograph is to hold one's breath, when all faculties converge to capture fleeting reality. It's at that precise moment that mastering an image becomes a great physical and intellectual joy”.

                                          Photo #1 by Henri

 Photo #2

This photo is taken by  Kushal Gangopadhyay. He said"From the day I took up a camera, Henri Cartier-Bresson was my Guru and unseen mentor whose photographs guided me how to capture the 'decisive moments' of life..." [Bouchard] As he said, he captured the decisive moment which is Henry's style. Those two photos expressed the real life among people on those photos; kids are very curious and looked like feel boring staying with adults.

 Photo #3 by Henri

 Photo #4

                       This photo was taken by David Procter. He mentioned about Henry; "Adding a photograph to anywhere near (Henri Cartier-Bresson's) name feels a little ridiculous such is his genius and influence on the craft. I have learned lots from his photographs in terms of composition, geometry and of course the decisive moment." [Bouchard]

photo #5

This photo was taken by Nathan Weyland. He said "...Henri Cartier-Bresson called it the 'decisive moment' - that fraction of a second which can reveal the character of your subjects and the emotion of the moment. This approach is ingrained and instinctual among photojournalists and documentary photographers such as myself. So pervasive is his influence, I never leave for a shoot without Bresson in the bag." [Bouchard]

Three of them took pictures of children who are playing with their friends and they succeed to captured and convey one part of their real life.

 Photo #6 by Henrie

 photo #7

This photo was taken by Wyn Lovoto. He said "HCB inspired me in taking this picture as I waited patiently and low-profile until the right moment arose: lighting, poses, expressions, composition all came together during a very short moment of time. Click!" [Bouchard]

photo #8

            This photo was taken by Manolo Almeida. He said "...Bresson´s images show me how to see the simple people of one particular way." [Bouchard]

            Henri, Lovoto, and Almedia cut out the variety of people's life and expressed into one photography. Those are of course decisive moment. 

     
Just by seeing those pictures, we can imagine object people's life and emotions because those are the decisive moment. 

I think the most important aspects of his work is his enormous talent for perception and ability to react, together with a sense to be at the right place at the right time in situations that interested him, and then captured the moment in its perfect. He was a true observer who knew what he wanted and what interested him. He once compared himself to a fisherman. He means that the most important thing was to approach his catch cautiously, and to strike at just the right moment. The only difference was that the catch was not an animal but a chance.

             He said “During the work, you have to be sure that you haven’t left any holes, that you’ve captured everything, because afterwards it will be too late.” 

Biography. n.d. .

Bouchard, Darlene. Best of Photo Challenge: Inspired by Henri Cartier-Bresson! 28 May 2010. .

O'Hagan, Sean. Photographers Henri Cartier-Bresson and Walker Evans: America exposed. 20 July 2009 . .

1. Henri Cartier-Bresson. SOVIET UNION. Leningrad. Commemorating the victory over the Nazis. 9 May 1973.

2. Gangopadhyay, Kushal. Boy at Id prayer .

3. Henri Cartier-Bresson. ITALY. Rome. 1951.

4. Procter, David. Boys .

5. Weyland, Nathan. Washing Off.

6. Henri Cartier-Bresson. USA. New York City. Harlem. 1947.

7. Lovoto, Wyn. Three of a Kind.

8. Almeida, Manolo. Antonina.