Henri Cartier-Bresson's notion of the "decisive moment" in photography was inspired by words from Cardinal de Retz. Retz's original words are, "Il n'y a rien dans ce monde qui n'ait un moment decisif." Translated, "There is nothing in this world that does not have a decisive moment."

Here are some of my favorite moments decisively captured by some brilliant photographers:

The presence of people tends to create a "decisive moment" photograph. How boring would this picture be without the person blurring by on their bicycle?!

Behind the Gare St. Lazareby Henri Cartier-Bresson — Behind the Gare St. Lazare
by Henri Cartier-Bresson

I'm not sure what is happening here, nor am I sure how deep this water is, but the precision of capturing this moment just before the man's heel hits the surface of the water is outstanding - not to mention his use of an extremely imprecise camera compared to today's cameras. This is a perfect example of a "decisive moment."

If you're interested, this is a look through Cartier-Bresson's photobook The Decisive Moment:

Girl in Fulton Streetby Walker Evans — Girl in Fulton Street
by Walker Evans

Which "version" do you prefer?

I prefer the image on the right; I think it is more decisive. I feel like it is taken moments after the image on the left, just after the two men in the foreground stepped out of the shot and the woman just slightly turns her gaze.

I just love these two photos by Brassaï. They're not traditional "decisive moment" photos because there is at least one subject in each of them staring right at the camera's lens - right at us. He was obviously not taking these flash photographs in secret at 2am in dark at somewhat shady bars around Paris. The subjects seem like direct participants in the capturing of these, or should I say their, moments. Oh, and the 'kiss curls'...can't beat that. Those will be back in style in no time.

Woman on the Street with Her Eyes Closedby Diane Arbus — Woman on the Street with Her Eyes Closed
by Diane Arbus

Blinks don't last very long. People also don't walk down the street with their eyes closed very often. Was this taken during a blink? How long did this blink last? Was the woman standing with here eyes closed, taking in a deep breath of fresh air, before opening them again and continuing her stroll down the street?

Loyalist militiaman at the moment of death, Cerro Muriano, September 5, 1936by Robert Capa — Loyalist militiaman at the moment of death,
Cerro Muriano, September 5, 1936
by Robert Capa

What could be a more decisive moment for a photographer than watching your subject get shot and ultimately die? The constant moral dilemma of war photography: take the picture, or save the soldier?

World's Fair, New Yorkby Garry Winogrand — World's Fair, New York
by Garry Winogrand

You must click this picture and see it in its larger form. Each individual person on this bench has a story, and it's really fun to make up their stories! I wrote a poem inspired by this photo.

Untitledby Garry Winogrand — Untitled
by Garry Winogrand

I will never admit I know what is going on in this photograph, but it is definitely carrying the essence of "decisive moment."

Los Angeles, Californiaby Garry Winogrand — Los Angeles, California
by Garry Winogrand

Oh the shadows! Plus, the women, the man in the wheelchair, and the child turning to look at it all. Just wonderful!

Marilyn Monroeby Richard Avedon — Marilyn Monroe
by Richard Avedon

Surprise. I bet you saw this coming. I don't think I need to say more about this spectacular portrait than I already have. ;-) My FAVORITE decisive moment.

See Richard Avedon's Marilyn Monroe and Today I Asked Why.

Meudonby André Kertész — Meudon
by André Kertész

The photograph on the far right is the one truly titled Meudon. I wasn't a huge fan of this picture when I first saw it, but I became a fan when I saw this sequence of shots. Meudon is the perfect example of a decisive moment. Here's the photograph alone:

I will end the photographs with this:

Greta Garboby Edward Steichen — Greta Garbo
by Edward Steichen

At first glance, this looks like a simple portrait - not a decisive moment. But, according to my History of Photography professor, during this photoshoot, both Greta and Edward were getting a little bit frustrated. Greta leaned on the backside of a chair with a "my hair is driving me crazy!" gesture pulling back her hair and resting her elbows on the back of the chair. *snap* Decisive moment. Beautiful.

Some of Life's Decisive Moments:

Saying "I love you" for the first time...and waiting for him to say something (anything!) back.

Just some personal experience speaking here.

What's wrong?"

If you're asked this, you're not hiding it very well.  Is it worth unloading it all?

Is it worth burdening this person with what is "wrong"?

Do they actually care?  Will they understand?

Will they judge?  Will they offer unsolicited advice?

Running a red light...

a yellow light...

a purple light.

Crash.  Bang.  911.

Let's catch the later movie; we're not going to make it in time.

Stepping into a street before the beeps for the blind.

It's stranger than fiction.

"Deciding to write a cute boy on Facebook." - RTH

Yes, I meet people online.

Top of a step ladder.

Tippie toes...bad idea.

Entering an elevator.

Will you make it?

Hitting "Send," Clicking "Publish," Pressing "Share," and "Tweet."

Social media is not, and will not, be the death of me.  It only brings life.

It brings it in so many different ways and gives me so many verb options

for getting it all out there for you to read.

"Do you want to be boyfriends?" - JLH

"Do you?"  *sigh*  "Yes..."

Will you marry me?

This posting is a bit different for me. I would like to take a blog moment to pay tribute to my favorite portrait photograph. I was first introduced to this portrait of Marilyn Monroe by Richard Avedon in my Digital Photography class Spring semester of 2008. I fell in love the moment I saw it. So in love, in fact, that I now have an almost-life-sized print of this photo beautifully framed and hanging in my house. If that doesn't emphasize my passion about this portrait, I don't know how else to convince you. ;-)

Below you will find the following: said portrait, a video clip from American Masters - Richard Avedon: Darkness and Light (1996) where Avedon recounts the moment this portrait of Marilyn was captured, a critique on the photograph by Maria Morris Hambourg and Mia Fineman from their elegant book Avedon's Endgame, and my own closing critique and remarks. Enjoy!

Marilyn Monroe, Actress, New York City, May 6, 1957 Richard Avedon (American, 1923-2004) Gelatin silver print — **Marilyn Monroe, Actress, New York City**, May 6, 1957 Richard Avedon (American, 1923-2004) Gelatin silver print

This is a clip from PBS American Masters, Richard Avedon: Darkness and Light, Directed by Helen Whitney, 1996. Here, Avedon himself reflects on the exact moment this glorious portrait was taken.

I really enjoyed the following critique on this portrait. Please note, these are not my comments, but those of Maria Morris Hambourg and Mia Fineman from Avedon's Endgame; I want to make sure they receive the credit for their insightful remarks:

"In Marilyn Monroe, Avedon found a virtuoso of theatrical self-impersonation and with her pursued the mysterious point of convergence between actor and character, between the private self and the public role. 'There was no such person as Marilyn Monroe,' he explained in an interview with the filmmaker Helen Whitney [clip above]. 'Marilyn Monroe was someone Marilyn Monroe invented, line an author creates a character.' Recalling a session that took place at his studio on a May evening in 1957, he continued: 'For hours she danced and sang and flirted and did this thing that's -- she did Marilyn Monroe. And then there was the inevitable drop. And when the night was over and the white wine was over and the dancing was over, she sat in the corner like a child, with everything gone. I saw her sitting quietly without expression on her face, and I walked towards her but I wouldn't photograph her without her knowledge of it. And as I came with the camera, I saw that she was not saying no.'

"The famous portrait that resulted from this session is a study of the complex nature of celebrity. Entombed in her body, Avedon's Marilyn is a secular madonna mourning some indefinable loss. The picture is imbued with a sense of inferiority that seems worlds away from the rigid mask in Andy Warhol's posthumous silk screens of Marilyn as a gaudily glamorous pop icon. While Avedon's portrait foreshadowed the tragic figure Marilyn would soon become in the popular imagination, Warhol's silk screens, made shortly after her death from a drug overdose in 1962, have the still and distant quality of memorials. Yet neither Avedon's humanist portrayal of a sad seductress nor Warhol's luric canonization of her vivacious, wet-lipped counterpart reveals the real Marily Monroe. The truth of Avedon's portrait lies in a new character, a melancholy heroine collaboratively created by the photographer and his subject."

Hambourg, Maria Morris, and Mia Fineman. Avedon's Endgame. New York City: Harry N. Abrams, Incorporated, New York, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2002.

This is a picture of my framed print of this portrait. This print was originally made for sale during a special exhibition of Richard Avedon's work at The Metropolitan Museum of Art September 26, 2002 - Jan 5, 2003. After a year of searching, I finally got my hands on it!

I am still at a loss to fully explain why I am so moved by this picture. I didn't (and still don't) know a lot about Marilyn Monroe and her life, but when I was first struck by this portrait, I knew enough to let it take me away. Her facial expression and bodily posture say, "What have I been doing? What have I done? Why am I doing this? And when will it end?" We all do things we're not proud of, get lost in the moment, and have these same striking realizations where we ask ourselves those same questions.

I guess, for me, I found solace in this portrait through empathy. Marilyn Monroe, oddly enough, became someone for me to relate to. Would I have felt the same had I not known anything about the personal life of the woman in the picture? I'm not sure. But either way, her facial expression and posture would ask the same questions. I believe the same message would be conveyed, but it is even more powerful with it being conveyed through this seemingly uncharacteristic, yet stunningly beautiful portrait of Marilyn Monroe.

Some of Life's Decisive Moments:

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