The photograph people choose is rarely the one they expected to like.
More often than not, it happens a few seconds before the pose begins or a few seconds after it ends.
The Best Photographs Happen Between Poses
When people imagine a photoshoot, they usually imagine direction.
The photographer tells someone where to stand. The subject adjusts their posture. A pose is created. The shutter clicks.
Sometimes that's exactly how it works.
But many of my favorite photographs happen somewhere else.
They happen in the moments between instructions.
A model laughs before resetting for the next frame.
A musician stares offstage while waiting for the lights to change.
A founder stops thinking about the camera for a second and starts thinking about something else entirely.
For a brief moment, the performance disappears.
The person remains.
Those are the moments that interest me most.
Early in my career, I thought great photography depended on knowing exactly what to say. I believed confidence came from having complete control of a shoot.
Over time, I learned that photography often works the opposite way.
The goal isn't to force something into existence.
The goal is to notice when it already exists.
Some of the strongest photographs I've ever made happened while someone adjusted a jacket, looked away, fixed their hair, or simply forgot they were being photographed.
The image becomes less about appearance and more about presence.
That's the difference.
Anyone can learn a pose.
Presence is harder to fake.
Whether I'm photographing a model, an executive, an artist, or someone who has never stepped in front of a professional camera before, I'm usually looking for the same thing.
The moment when self-consciousness disappears.
The moment when someone becomes themselves again.
Photography has introduced me to remarkable people over the years. Different industries. Different cities. Different backgrounds.
What surprises me is how similar everyone becomes once the camera comes out.
Almost everyone feels nervous.
Almost everyone worries about how they look.
Almost everyone believes they aren't photogenic.
Then something shifts.
The conversation becomes more important than the camera.
The person relaxes.
And that's usually when the photograph appears.
Not during the performance.
After it.
Not during the pose.
Between poses.
That's where I've found some of my favorite images.
And that's where I'm usually looking.