Q. The photograph above is by Rinko Kawauchi and the photograph below is the work of Robert Polidori. Each represents a very different approach to photography. Can you describe what the difference is?

A. To put it in rudimentary terms, Kawauchi is a “moment” photographer and Polidori is a more deliberate still photographer. Some of the differences result from the kind of camera each uses. Kawauchi uses a small hand held camera and Polidori uses a large heavy camera that sits on a tripod. This is not necessarily an important distinction but it can help you understand the continuum of expressive orientations in a single medium. There is tremendous variation in approach in the photographic arts, and advances in technology continue to expand the creative possibilities.

Note: I could be wrong, but I think Americans favor moment photographers based on the enormous contribution of street photographers to American photography. We tend to ascribe a higher level of creativity to the spontaneous photo than to other kinds of photos when, in fact, each is equally difficult to execute successfully. While a moment photo can make your heart skip a beat, very still and quiet photos can have equal and lasting power.

See below, their two cameras.