November 25, 2013 10:05am by Richard Hume

Monday Motivator – Sacred Waters

Legendary French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson coined a phrase – Le moment decisif / The decisive moment – which I loved from the moment I heard it. I have carried it with me in all my photographic travels as it encapsulates all the elements that come together in the moment when you press the shutter to capture a photograph. This was particularly the case with Cartier-Bresson’s amazing people photography.

For me all the elements of the decisive moment came together in the extraordinary ancient Indian city of Varanasi where I captured this photograph ‘Sacred Waters’. It was an experience I will never forget as I sat by the River Ganges at sun rise and watched as these incredibly devoted worshippers made their way to the Ghats and into the sacred waters of the river. As an outsider it was an incredible scene to witness and I felt extra privileged to be able to capture a little of the essence of this timeless ritual on film.

This photograph was captured in a single frame with a half second exposure on Fuji Velvia 50 ASA film at f32.