That's What Praying Is For

Towards the end of a workshop about composition I was teaching at Union Station last weekend, we got to talking about news photography and storytelling. I’d be rambling on for a couple of minutes when my girlfriend's voice popped into my head, “Give them examples, dummy!” (Ok…in her defense, I added the “dummy” part).

So I stopped and asked, “What would you photograph if you were asked for a picture to go with a story about enjoying a hot summer day?” Kids playing in the fountains was the unanimous choice.

With our subject decided, we were reviewing how to make compelling compositions of the scene when the question arose, “But what if the kids aren’t playing where the best composition is?”

My obvious response, “That’s what praying is for.”