Memorable photographs have been made with the simplest of cameras using available light. …
… Yousuf Karsh

A good quote from a famous, and courageous, portrait photographer. I mean, anyone with the guts to snatch a cigar away from Winston Churchill just to get a better photo deserves some serious respect.

I’m not a portrait photographer, but I do like to take photos of people when they aren’t aware that I’m taking their photo. I like capturing the spontaneous gesture, or a glance. If I think the subject is distracted, I’ll frame the photo and then call their name, releasing the shutter just as they turn their gaze toward me. Sometimes it works. Other times it kicks me a kick in the shin. Another tactic is to sneak a photo while the subject is speaking or listening intently to someone else.

Not all of the photos in this gallery were shot this way, but a good many of them were, using a technologically advanced camera, but almost entirely with available light.