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Still Photography Shack Guide

Still Photography Highlights A Moment In Time

By Jane Lovell

Still photography is widely used in almost every facet of photography. You may see still images in magazines and on products. Fashion photographs would highlight still images of the latest season designer collection.

Other still images would include portrait photographs in the corporate annual report, baby photographs on the wall of a family home and children in school uniform. All these images are examples of still photography.

Video is quite popular, especially when it includes sound and motion, one needs to remember, video is a collection of frames. These frames contain still images. Some of the better still images can be captured when video editing and printed on photographic paper.

A Still Picture And Moving Images

Still photography is often looked upon as inferior to video. And who wouldn’t think so? After all, a still picture is just that - still. Video is moving, people say. it’s captured reality that we can watch and experience again and again. Video is the future; still photography is a thing of the past.

But is that really true? Is still photography an ancient art form? We think not! In fact, we fully believe that still photography, when employed by a master, is much more powerful than video.

Still Photography - A Frozen Moment In Time

Still photos are easy to access and view as opposed to video which needs playback devices to be appreciated. This fact alone hinders videos reach. Plus, video demands a viewer’s time for it to work. A single still photograph takes just one second to burn itself onto a person’s mind. And the more masterful the shot, the more powerful the effect.

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Still Photography And Video

Consider how different using video is compared to still photography. Video can capture moments of fear, hysteria, jubilation and lay them out for the world to watch in sequence. Still photography doesn’t share that luxury (even a series of chronological photos is nowhere near the motion of video).

Yet what happens if you strip video of sound? Context? Sometimes, all you get is a blur. Without the gunfire and screaming, you wouldn’t know you were watching a war. Without a narrator’s voice over you wouldn’t understand the depths of a tragedy like a vicious earthquake or devastating famine.

One Well Constructed Photograph

Still photography, on the other hand, can capture hundreds of ideas and emotions in just one well constructed photograph. Who can forget the award-winning image of an African child, crawling in an open field on the verge of death, a vulture landing nearby to stake claim to its future meal?

Surely video would have made for a much more devastating portrait of the moment, though perhaps it would end up being obscene. A single still photo, however, captured all one needs to know about the situation in Africa and sent shock waves throughout the world.

Shake People Out Of Their Reality

Which brings us to the real power of still photography… the ability to shake people out of their own reality to another realm - without moving. Video is obvious, blatant, and consequently, in some cases, unreal.

Still pictures, like those that captured the World Trade Center attacks and the nightmarish aftermath, were infinitely more powerful than the news replays of dirty and bloody people.

Still photography is an amazing art form. Video is great and has its own strengths of course. But the next time you watch the news or view a home video, remember how distinct it is to open a family photo album or news magazine and experience the thoughts and ideas shown in still photography. There’s a world of difference.

Creating Still Images From Video

A still photo is a frame, an image frozen in time. The image of a newborn, exhilaration of a winner. You can read more in a face in a still photo, than in a moving image. Remember, a video is a series of still images moving fast. With video editing, you can freeze one of the images and make it into a still photograph and frame the image and place it next to all the other family photographs.

For example, you may have shot a video of a birthday party. While editing the video on the computer, you can freeze one or two of the frames showing the exhilaration of the birthday girl, blowing out the candles. You can capture the better images, print them on photographic paper, place each photograph in glass picture frames and then place them on the wall of the family home.

These are some of the wide uses of still photography. From portraits including family images, to news images, advertising, fashion photos highlighting the new season designer collection. All are fantastic examples of still photography.

About the Author:
Jane Lovell has written a number of articles on digital photography including Best Digital Cameras, Mini Digital Camera, Photographer School, Portrait Photography, Baby Photography, Boudoir Photography, Art Of Photography, Amateur Photography, Photography Backdrop, Photography Tips, Digital Photography Tips, Photography Studio.
Lookout for more articles from this author on this website.