I compose myself with a lot of poise. Just kidding. I’m always ready to accept any moment, just like getting into a fight, you have to know where to aim and when to duck. It’s something you get with practice. I actually take a lot of lessons unrelated to photography to get the philosophy of movements (not seriously but on and off I’ve been taking Yoga, dance and now just recently Kung Fu where my teachers give me invaluable lessons that I translate into how I do my work). You know when to stand back, to fight, to endure and keep your balance. Lately I’ve figured out you must know when to step back or leave when you know you’ve gotten what you needed. (Although not as brutal as a wham bam thank you ma’am sort of thing, but I save a little bit for myself so I have some sanity left for the future. A creative job like this which includes a lot of manual labor at stake is a vortex for burn out).

I guess what you mean is how to I compose a photograph. Like I’ve said many times before, you look for the story. I have to honestly tell you that I only heard of the rule of thirds in the last few years. I realized that I didn’t have to know the theory because I play balance by sight. If the photo is appealing to my eye, then it’s good enough for me. 

If we live solely by the technical dos and don’ts of photography then we’ll all have the same photos. That would be a boring world. I think you must know the technical basics, but be free to do whatever you want, as long as you’re getting a message across. 

One may be able to create a pretty picture, but capturing a story is far more difficult than any technical direction. That is something I am still currently working on myself. :(

All photos should have one goal onstage or offstage, and that’s getting a message across. :)