Henri Cartier-Bresson and The Decisive Moment

"The Decisive Moment" - This term is perhaps Cartier-Bresson's greatest legacy that influenced modern photography as we see it today. In the early 20th century a German camera manufacturer created a portable camera that was light, compact, and quiet which allowed the photographer previously unseen creative freedom. One of the most notable points of the camera is that the viewing hole was on the very left of the camera, whereas commonly most single reflex cameras had the viewfinder in the centre. This is notable because it left the left eye free to look about and take in the scene as it unfolded, giving the photographer unprecedented views of his intended photo shot.

Cartier-Bresson was one of the first owners of this camera and he used it to kick-start modern photographic journalism. This photograph, taken in 1932 is considered the first and greatest picture of photojournalism:

The picture is notable because it had several key elements that were considered to foreshadow events in Europe that preceded it. The man jumping off of the palet into the large puddle was seen as an allegory to Europe as a whole "jumping into the void, as a year later the Nazi party had successfully gained power in Germany and kickstarted the events that lead to World War Two. Also, the broken hoop is interpreted as a broken wheel (a phrase meant to imply a serious and damaging occurence), a symbol of Europe's eventual descent into warfare.

The picture showed the world what could be achieved with cameras that was previously extremely difficult, as cameras were usually large and unwieldy and often the photograph had to be planned out moments before the picture was taken. This was important as it allowed photographs to be more natural and free flowing, capturing life as it was in its purest form.

The camera he used was a Leica L