BY DOMINIQUE SHAW
TWO SECONDS
As a reportage photographer rapidly developing stories, unpredictable action and consequently fast shutter speeds tend to be my primary domain. But within those .somethings of a second that I ultimately capture I always seek to find a truth - to reveal something, some essence, big or small of the subjects and scenes in front of me that I can give back to the viewer to help them understand not just what was happening but who the people in these photographs really are.
When it comes to portraits, however, I find that truth sometimes a little harder to undercover. A fraction of a second in context can tell you all you need to know, but take the subject away from the story and how do we reveal who somebody is? How do we find that intimacy with a subject simply looking at the camera and doing what they’re asked to do?
To me part of that truth can be found in silence and stillness. In .something of a second a subject can hide themselves, they can be whatever you or they want to be. But slow down the process and ask them to remain still and quiet for just two seconds and the truth of a person becomes more difficult to disguise. Even at as little as a two second exposure to me it feels somehow more intimate; more honest, more revealing. These portraits of my two wonderful nephews were captured on a 2 second exposure, ISO 400, F8.
