Read This If You Want to Take Great Photographs

The good from the bad

Photographs without excuses

For other examples:

Ansel Adams p. 8

Martin Parr p. 18

Robert Capa p. 105

All the effort that went into capturing this shot paid off. The crew of Apollo 17 really nailed it. It’s a picture that comes without any excuses.

Great photographs don’t usually offer themselves up on a plate. You have to go that extra mile to capture them.

Such images often lie at the end of a patient wait, a steep climb, a long day on your feet or, in this case, a short trip into space.

But nothing’s guaranteed. Even after all the effort, sometimes you’re left with a shot that doesn’t quite cut it. A shot that does come with excuses like, ‘just before I took this the light was incredible.’ Or, ‘yeah, I know, but I was ...