I like a bit of drag. Oooh, yes, deep in the forest is normally a good place, just when the light is fading. I’m partial to a bit of wiggling too. Down on the beach on a flat light day, you can’t beat a good wiggle. It’s great fun and the last time I looked, completely legal. I learnt to drag and wiggle many years ago when running landscape photography tours. If truth be told, dragging and wiggling initially stemmed from a bit of desperation. When the light is ostensibly lifeless, convincing tour guests that effective imagery can still be produced can be tough. Fifteen years on, and it’s rare that our tours don’t include a bit of drag and wiggle.
I understand from those who walk the corridors of photographic power that these days, dragging and wiggling is referred to as ‘ICM’ or Intentional Camera Movement. Whilst, in my view, ICM hasn’t got quite the same ring to it; we better toe the official line here.
There are lots of ways to create ICM, including in post-processing, but to my mind, it’s much more stimulating outside in the elements with the camera in hand.
So, what is ICM? As the name suggests, it involves ...