Sergi Beltran
Henri Cartier-Bresson, "Hyeres, France"
1932, gelatin silver print
I truly love Henri Cartier-Bresson's idea of a "decisive moment". This picture is one that truly captures the essence of capturing a single moment in time. He waited until that bicyclist came by and took the picture. Although the moment he captured may seem insignificant it really does make the picture. His choice of perspective gives an interesting view of everything. The lines and shapes of that the stairs and guard rail as well as the street and walls gives this picture a complexity in that it has lines and forms in many directions. To me, this reminds me of calligraphic lines and an expressiveness with the dark rails and lines. What makes the picture truly connect is the bicyclist where he pops out in black clothing from what would be a blank surface if he wasn't there. As a result, this enables the viewer to move his or her eye across throughout the image. I love how it kind of reminds me of the starting of a day. It really is amazing how this picture can show the beauty of capturing a moment in time that we would fail to see without the camera.
