Think Before You Shoot
The Art of Taking Creative Photographs
Santino Zafarana
By Santino Zafarana
About the Book
Why images matter and how to create consistently powerful and captivating ones, from the perspective of a renowned photographer
Fueled by the handy cellphone camera and social media, weâve become obsessed with digital imagesâfrom posting âselfiesâ on Snapchat to featuring still lifes of what weâre having for dinner in our Facebook stories. Yet, for those seeking more creativity in their lives, thereâs nothing like taking photographs through the lens of an actual camera, complete with a focus ring and shutter button.
âPhotography helps you look at the world and your life through fresh eyes,â attests Santino Zafarana, an internationally recognized photographer and teacher. In Think Before You Shoot Zafarana offers an illuminating guide to understanding the art of seeing, with 21 techniques to make taking photographs a conscious act. To consistently capture wondrous images, he emphasizes adopting a simple yet deliberate practice: before you press the shutter button, stop to observe and answer four critical questions:
1. What are you looking at?
2. Why does this image captivate you?
3. What elements should remain in the image?
4. How can you show your viewer all that you see?
The book also covers these important points:
⢠Why photographs matterâto developing a sense of identity, tracing your personal evolution, preserving cherished memories, keeping a record of your ideas, and securing your legacy.
⢠How the cellphone has changed not only the way we take, view, and share pictures but also the nature and meaning of photographs themselves.
⢠The importance of understanding good, basic lightingâincluding natural window lightingâand how light affects the quality and âfeelâ of images. As Zafarana stresses: âLight creates mood.â
⢠Why to never overlook a photographâs background, and how paying attention to subtle background elements can strengthen and enrich your subject in the foreground.
⢠Pointers for effective croppingâincluding why to never crop a picture at the personâs knees, elbows, ankles, wrists, or toes.
⢠The power of the photographerâs point of view and its impact on a photographâs focal point. âEvery decision about point of view changes the way your viewer will see the photograph,â notes Zafarana.
⢠The rewards of investing the care and developing the consciousness to take great photographs, including finding creative fulfillment and building self-esteem.