Always the thinker, photographer Dan James asks:
Do you visualise the image first then seek it out, or capture what you discover along the way?
I am a wanderer, a camera in hand, always casually looking for what’s waiting to be found. On the other hand. I have friends, some professional and some amateurs, who are planners. When they are out and about they observe things not as they are but as they could be under specific conditions. They take notes and wait for the right conditions to occur. Whereas I may go out in a snowstorm looking for photographs, my friends know exactly where they'll be. There are benefits to a planned approach.
These photographers are more likely to have a consistent body of work and are less likely to be disappointed. But the less planned approach can lead to photographs that might never have been made. Being in the right place at the right time is an element of the hunt. It's like a treasure hunt.
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