Photographer Daido Moriyama has a fantastic trick that more photographers should truly get behind: not looking into the viewfinder. Instead, he documents the world around him and then figures it out later on in the finalization process. It’s a great tactic that yields fun results. Sometimes, you can shoot from the hip, while at other times, you basically just put the camera down and shoot something. It’s a maverick approach that should be understood a bit more and can spark new creative energy in you.
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How Daido Moriyama Shoots
If we watch Tatiana Harper’s video on Daido Moriyama, we learn that he finds that the viewfinder is limiting because it’s crops things out of the world. So, instead, he just shoots an image and figures it all out later on in post-production. Of course, this means that the magic of his images happens in post-production and that editing is a huge part of the work that he does. But the reason why he does this is so incredibly intentional. It’s a slap in the face to Western photojournalism.
When a photographer shoots, they pause to think about the moment, framing, and shooting. But with Daido Moriyama, that’s not happening, really. He points and shoots without even looking. In this way, the camera becomes his creative collaborator, capturing what’s around him, and then he works to make the images something different later on.
Peering into a viewfinder or using an LCD screen takes you out of the moment in front of you. With this method, you’re still in the moment, no matter what.
Literally, what you’re doing is walking up to a subject and shooting. That’s it. You should dive into his various books to see more.
Tips on Shooting This Way
Often when I review cameras, I tend to shoot this way. I’m legally blind, and sometimes, this helps me express how I see the world. But at other times, it helps me stay in tune with the world at the moment and doesn’t take me out of it. Often, however, I shoot to be able to do post-production without needing to do it. So here are some tips on what I’ve done over the years:
- Learn how to see the way your lens does. The 35mm field of view is different from the 50mm. So too, does the aperture change.
- Consider manually or zone-focusing on a scene
- Use scene detection. It can be very fascinating to see what a camera will pick up on.
- Use specific white balancing
- Consider slowing the shutter down and playing with over-and-over exposure.
Sometimes these can get you fantastic results. I shoot with Leica M cameras this way, and I’m always really happy that I can make great photos.
Embrace the Results and the Best Gear
Sometimes, the best gear for this style of shooting that Daido Moriyama uses is just to use anything. But if you don’t want to do any post-production, Fujifilm, Leica, and LUMIX might do the best job. Canon can as well if you’re loading specific camera styles onto the camera. But more importantly, you should open up your mind and your heart. Sometimes, the best thing about photography is the idea of just letting things happen — we often call these happy accidents. Later on, those can be worked on to make beautiful photos.
What’s even better about this: there’s no way that an AI is going to try to make an image look like this.