What's your phrase? These are the words Victoria Dye repeated as she presented to our club last week. These words have always been a sticking point for me and so I listened intently as she went through her talk on travel photography.

I know that when I shoot, I tend to just go with the moment and try to become as present and connected to the moment as I possibly can. Most of the time, this is to the extent of just getting into a flow state and going with intuition as to what to shoot. Some times it works and some times it does not. But there is not a lot of thought going into the process.

I have to laugh because there are so many times that I get back after a shoot and when I begin to review my images my first impression is - what the heck was I thinking here? Maybe it is related to shooting fast and loose (and hand held) but I am often puzzled as to where I placed the horizon in my shots or where that trash can in the foreground came from. I guess some people are faster learners but I get a lot of "how not to" examples.

So I have decided to take the time to slow down a bit. To think more about the shot and to begin thinking about the meaning of what I am trying to capture before I shoot - rather then deciding after the fact. For me this was another step forward and really something that suddenly dawned on me.

The other day I was submitting an image for another TME assignment and as I was trying to decide what skill level to indicate (I always choose intermediate because I think that there is always something new to learn). As I thought about this process I was wondering if and when I would be able to choose advanced as my selection. It was then that I realized that at least one difference between an intermediate and an advanced photographer is this:

• An advanced photographer has the ability to pre visualize and create the image that they see in their mind.
• An intermediate photographer finds the image that they see on their screen.

To date, this was the way I was approaching photography. Go out, shoot and learn. There will be another day. To me a first step (hopefully in the right direction) is to slow down, previsualize and pick the phrase that the photograph represents, let the light do the work and quit playing creativity hide 'n seek!

Cheers!