Taking photos at a holiday gathering is like cooking a holiday meal–without proper preparation, the end result may prove uncomfortable for all involved.

The digital age has made photography both easier and harder, better and worse than it was before. Better, because now we just snap, print and publish. Worse, because now we just snap, print, and publish. Today, it’s way too easy to publish photos–photos that look overexposed, underexposed. And photos that those near and dear, friends and family, might find less than flattering.

Post in haste, repent at leisure.

The digital photography phenomenon has other quagmires, as well. The cameras themselves, for example, have an insane number of settings and options. We can get lost in technicalities. When there’s a wealth of possibilities, strangely, we’re not always the richer for it.

Just in time for the holidays, I sat down with Altadena resident and freelance photographer/writer/podcaster Ibarionex Perello. He’s a regular contributor to major photography publications, including Rangefinder and Digital Photo, and has written two photography books this year; you can find Chasing the Light at Vroman’s and on Amazon. Perello also teaches a hands-on class in basic and advanced photography.

We talked about his approach to photography, including some techniques that are within everyone’s immediate grasp.

What is the most common mistake made by amateur photographers?

Perello: Taking only one shot of their subject. They’ll take one shot and think, "Oh, this is good," or, more likely, "This is bad," and move on. The first shot will rarely if ever be the best. You’ve got to explore, look carefully, shoot the same subject over and over again, but from different sides, angles, perspectives.

Understand what it is you’re responding to, and then communicate that same impression to someone else. Try to share your experience.

What kind of preparation should be done ahead of time?

Perello: Get your camera ready. I always prepare the basics ahead of time--white balance, shutter speed and ISO. Those are the core elements. Then I’m ready to catch the moment when it happens.

Once you increase your proficiency, you can explore some of the other options. Don’t get so preoccupied with the camera that you forget to look, to see. Photography is a balance of technique and creativity.

You’re best known for your amazing street scenes.  After the camera preparation, what do you do?

Perello: Unless I’m on assignment, I have no preconceived notions as to what I’ll find–I don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s all a blank slate. Then, when something draws me, I’m like a detective and have to figure out what interests me about the subject. Is it the light? The person? The humor?

What can we do to move holiday photos beyond the realm of frozen smiles and rigid poses?

Perello: Take candid shots, and take shots of people interacting with each other, engaged in relationships. Be a fly on the wall. Don’t call attention to yourself--at some point they’ll forget you’re there. Practice how to see.

You say "practice how to see"–what does this mean?

Perello: Among other things, don’t always shoot from eye level. Also, quite literally, look at the edges of your frame. Include only what’s significant.  

But can’t you crop the photo, using software, when you get home?

Perello: Yes, you can, but it won't be the same. You'll lose something if you try to fix things later. Besides, that's a rather lazy approach. It's more satisfying to create and compose the shot in the camera, as you see it. In long run, it's also more efficient.

What’s your standard equipment?

Perello: It depends on my objective. I used to carry two cameras and four or five lenses. Now I just take one camera and one lens, unless I’m on an assignment. That way I'm not preoccupied with all the equipment. 

I’m not wedded to one particular camera–I like something fairly small and compact.

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I took Perello’s class this past weekend.  (Just to be clear, I paid for the class and was not recruited for advertising purposes.)  Other than learning to go beyond my one and only setting, my BFF, “Automatic,” my favorite part of the class was the photo walk we took around Pasadena, where Perello  indicated some points of interest , subtle things. The way the light caught someone’s jacket, for example; the shadow cast by a bench.  

I enjoyed your class. What do you hope I learned?

Perello: That you can be a better photographer, take more creative photographs, right away--the same day. There's a million ways to photograph the same subject. It’s not the quality of the camera that matters. What matters most is what you see.