Evening star., 1949-02-13
Camera Angles
Finding Good Pictures Right at Home
By Alexander j. Wedderbum
Alexander J. Wedderb
Curator Of Photography
The Smithsonian Institution

By Alexander
Curator Of
The Smthson
We live in the worlds most
beautiful city and yet, for some
reason hard to explain, the best
pictures of Washington seem to
be made by out-of- town photog-
raphers. We are enthusiastic
about a trip to some far corner
of the earth and look forward to
pictures we will take while vaca-
tioning, yet every day we pass
unseen and unappreciated scenes
of pictorial splendor and docu-
mentary possibility that others
come from the world over to see
and photograph. Perhaps this is
because these scenes have become
so commonplace with us as to dull
our sense Of appreciation.
It is more probable, though,
that the proper perspective has
been lost due to a failure to view
that which we have close at hand
for the real pictorial possibilities.
The trouble seems to be that we
are always in big hurry to get
somewhere else and fail to see
that which is there to be pictured.
Any big city is alive with picture
possibilities and our own is far
from being the exception. Take
the downtown shopping district
as one example. At noon, with
the hun high overhead, and thou
sands Of people scurrying for a
bite to eat, with traffic in snarls
and horns blowing. with police
men shrilling on their whistles,
and the air loaded with gasoline
fumes, your chances Of finding
subject matter for q good pic
torial shot may seem very dim.
But view the same scene a few
hours later when the sun Is low,
with long slanting shadows fall
ing from backlighted buildings
and you will discover that there
are fine opportunities for picture
taking. However, you must take
the trouble to look for them.
You'll never, see the picture posi-
bilities that we speak Of during
your headlong rush for a place In
the busline. Instead you will
have to look the town over with
critical eye with just the one
thought on your mind-to see the
picture and then take 1t.
Needs Planning Ahead.
AS a matter of fact, If you want
to take a really fine set OF pic
lures of the city you will have to
make your plans in much the
same manner that a movie cam
eraman prepares his shooting
script. This will take time. Not
lust some Sunday afternoon. but
on many days you will have to
apply your powers Of observation
to lighting conditions and other
factors that will influence the
result Of your camera work.
Almost any of the public build
ings or parks are good Tor many
pictorial angles. But for the best
shots we will have to make OBJ
servations as to how each scene
will appear under different light
ing conditions and under chang
ing weather conditions. It is OBJ
vious that the Capitol can be
photographed from many angles.
Likewise the lighting changes
constantly from early morning
until late evening.
So the problem is to observe the
building at different hours OF the
day from each of the many pos
sible angles Of approach. If, after
your analysis, you feel that back
lighted shot is more pictorial than
one lighted from the side. having
made a note of the ideal time. you
can wait until some day arrives
that the light is just right and
take YOUR shot. Your best scheme
would be to work out a shooting
schedule for a whole day. After
having determined the exact times
of day that ideal lighting condi-
tions exist for certain buildings
or places you can work out an
itinerary that will allow you time
to 20 from place to place and take
many pictures under the best con-
ditions. In other words. plan to
take good pictures instead OF
shooting haphazardly in the hope
of getting a usable negative.
Note Seasonal Changes.
Factors other than lighting will
also influence your work. For in
stance. q scene shot in a park dur
ing the summer while the trees
are in full foliage will scarcely be
recognizable as the same place II
a. duplicate shot is made during
the winter after a snowfall. And
by the same token. If you wish to
make a pictorial Of a certain mem.
orial without the usual line OF
automobiles in the foreground you
will have to be out OF bed way
ahead Of your normal schedule.
This may seem a bother at the
time but your picture will be the
better for it.
There are really very few good
night scenes on record. This is
very possibly due to the fact that
the best shots are made on nights
during or after snow or rain
when the streets are shiny and
pick up reflections from nearby
lighted buildings and automobile
headlamps. True, it may not be
fun to stand on a cold street cor
ner on a rainy night waiting Tor
time exposure, but again. the best
pictures don't always come the
easy way. So here's a really good
opportunity for you to produce q
series on the city as it appears by
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