The Image Frame

This is a quote from Hans Straand on the Zeiss Blog.  I love the quote because he cuts to the heart of why visualizing and patience are so important when trying to capture a scene.​

Speaking of composition, as an award-winning master of composition, how do you approach a shot?

The cornerstone of my photography is my personal interpretation of a landscape. I am extremely selective when it comes to choosing the image frame. I believe that the framing is the most important ingredient in photography. Without skillful framing, the photograph will just become a registration of a situation — “I was there and I took the picture” — instead of making it your own interpretation. Photography is not about capturing what you see, but interpreting what you feel. And, of course, I pay a lot of attention to what kind of light I want to use. I love the soft light of an overcast sky. In overcast conditions, I can work with more intellectual images, such as intimate landscapes. Or shoot small-scale wonders on a patch of ground of a square meter or so. There’s no rush and I can take all the time I want to find a good composition. Sometimes I think there is too much emphasis on drama and sensation in photography. My intimate landscapes are about the opposite of that.

​I have personally talked about how shooting Zeiss lenses help to slow you down and focus on what it is that you are trying to capture.  It is the combination of the manual focus and the supreme quality of the glass that makes you want to create something unique, something that represents your own personal vision.