Barry Tanenbaum

Some years ago Steve Simon took a leave from his job as a newspaper photographer in his native Canada and headed south across the border on a self-assigned project. “I’d loved photography since I was a kid in Montreal, roaming the streets, inspired by Cartier-Bresson,” Simon says, “but I’d been working 10 years at the newspaper, doing the same things again and again. I was looking for a way to get the inspiration back, to explore the power of what photography can be.”

A little bit of luck and a few snap decisions went into Robert J. Gowdie capturing in a still photo all the exuberance, energy, and playful nature of Alonzo, the 3-month-old Havanese puppy who had just come home to Gowdie’s family.

Who: Robert Beck, staff photographer for Sports Illustrated.
What: Infrared (IR) photography.
When: “The editors give me some leeway,” Robert says, “but I’m not going to be using it for a decisive putt.”
Where: Golf courses all over the world.
Why: Although the job calls for capture of the peak moment, the turning point, the key play, the tense concentration, the moment when the athlete’s body language gives it all away, there’s always the professional and personal challenge to do something different.
How: With a Nikon D700 modified for infrared photography.

The phrase "the art of observation" appears at Tony Sweet's web site (www.tonysweetphotography.com), but Sweet's photography depends on more than merely observing. "We all see the same things,"...