A subject looking straight down the lens creates a jolt no candid can match — a direct line drawn between the viewer and a stranger. It is the opposite of the unaware candid, and both belong in your work.

The method: shoot, then do not look away. Hold the camera, meet their eye, nod or smile. Often the strongest frame is the second one, taken after they have noticed you and reacted.

Look for: the moment of mutual acknowledgement — the challenge, the curiosity, the flicker of connection. Eye contact turns a picture of a person into a picture about being seen.