FIND YOUR FOCAL POINT
The next time you take a picture, before you snap the shutter, ask yourself, 搘hat is the point of interest in this picture??or 揥hat will draw the eye of the viewers of this picture梬hat is the subject??The reason this is important is that an image generally needs a 憆esting place?or point of interest to hold someone抯 attention. Once you have identified your subject, you can think of ways to enhance it and draw people in!
Some ways you can do this are:
-position within the image
-use of negative space
-balance and symmetry
-use of leading lines
-framing your image
-use of patterns, repetition, and texture
-perspective
Finally, you can use motion and depth of field (sharpness or blur) as we have discussed in past classes as well.
Rule of Thirds
Probably the best known rule of composition in photography is the Rule of Thirds. The rule of thirds explains what part of an image the human eye is most strongly drawn towards first. An imaginary tic-tac-toe board is drawn across an image to break it into nine equal squares. The four points where these lines intersect are strongest focal points. The lines themselves are the second strongest focal points. Aligning a subject with these points creates more tension energy and interest than simply centering a subject. Practice seeing this grid over the image before you even snaps the shot.
Using Space/Negative Space
This also has to do with placing your subjects within the frame. While I am a proponent of cropping in close for a more intimate connection with your subject, sometimes it makes for better composition to give your subject some space.
Think about having a smaller subject on a blank canvas梐nd when you do so, don抰 forget the rule of thirds when you place your subject.
Also, especially when photographing people or animals, or other moving objects - allow more space in the direction your subject is headed. This way they have 搑oom?to move in your picture. Also, allow more space to the side your subject is looking so they have somewhere to 搇ook.?br />
Sometimes it is what you leave out of an image that makes it special.
Frame your subject
And not just with the kind you buy at Michaels.
慒raming?can be used within the composition of a shot to help you highlight your main point of interest in the image and and/or to put it in context to give the image 慸epth? There are several ways you can do this. When shooting outdoors, you can frame your scene using the branches of a tree or even blades of grass. You can use a doorway, bridge or archway to frame your subject, or shoot the sunset through through the pier rather than just across the sand, etc.
For people, you can frame a face with a scarf or a fuzzy jacket, or picture them looking out a widow or other natural frame.
Balance and Symmetry
Symmetry sometimes be a negative (too static or boring) but can often be a big positive in a photograph, depending on the image and its purpose. Some images that may look good with symmetry are architecture, or interesting patterns, headshots etc. One thing you can try doing is to take two different shots of a scene梠ne with centered symmetry and one with the subject off center.
Balance: The positioning of elements in a frame can leave an image feeling balanced or unbalanced.. Too many points of interest in one section of your image can leave it feeling too 慼eavy?or complicated in that section of the shot and other parts feeling 慹mpty?
Use of lines in your composition
One way you can easily improve the composition of your images is to use lines to draw the viewer to your subject or to convey a message about your photograph. There are 4 different kinds of lines you can use in a composition: horizontal lines, vertical lines, diagonal lines and converging lines.
There抯 something about a horizontal line in an image that conveys a message of 抯tability?or even 憆est? Horizons, fallen trees, oceans, sleeping people - all of these subjects have something about them that speaks either of permanency and timelessness or rest.
Horizons are the most common horizontal lines found in photographs and they can act to divide or anchor a picture. In general, try to avoid placing your horizon in the center of your picture, which divides it in half in a very static way. Try to place your horizon on one of the rule of thirds lines梕ither show a lot of sky or a majority of foreground.
Also, layers of horizontal lines can create rhythm or patterns in an image that can become the focus of an image in and of itself.
Vertical lines in a photograph are usually used to convey strength and power (think skyscrapers) or growth (think trees). Often, vertical lines can be emphasized by holding your camera in a vertical format, thus lengthening the vertical subject futher and emphasizing its height. Again try not to cut your image in half with a vertical line.
With both horizontal and vertical lines, try to keep them straight and square with the sides of the picture梥o your horizon isn抰 tilted and your skyscraper doesn抰 look like the leaning tower of Pizza.
Diagonal lines generally work well to draw the eye of an image抯 viewer through the photograph. They create points of interest as they intersect with other lines and often give images depth by suggesting perspective.
They can also add a sense of action to an image and a dynamic look and feel.
Consider how you might use diagonal lines to lead the eye to your photograph抯 main subject or point of interest.
Numerous diagonal lines leading in different directions and intersecting with one another can add a sense of action to your photo but adding too many diagonal lines might make it chaotic and confusing.
The classic example of using converging lines in an image is the railroad tracks that are wide apart in the foreground and get closer together as they recede into the distance. Converging lines are a great way direct the viewer to your subject as they act as sort of a funnel which directs the gaze of the viewer in a certain direction. In addition to railroad tracks, you can use roads, pathways, stairs, fence lines, or any lines which converge in the distance. Try framing your converging lines on a diagonal rather than straight for a different effect, or using a very wide angle lens. Also, think about the position of the point of convergence, and maybe placing your subject there.
Perspective
The perspective that a shot is taken from is another element that can have a big impact upon an image, and can change the composition dramatically.
Shooting from up high and looking down on a subject or shooting from below looking up on the same subject drastically impact not only the 憀ook?of the image, emphasizing different points of interest, angles, textures, shapes etc - but it also impacts the 抯tory?of an image.
Try looking at a scene or subject from the obvious perspective and take some shots from different angles.
The perspective that a shot is taken from is another element that can have a big impact upon an image, and can change the composition dramatically.
Shooting from up high and looking down on a subject or shooting from below looking up on the same subject drastically impact not only the 憀ook?of the image, emphasizing different points of interest, angles, textures, shapes etc - but it also impacts the 抯tory?of an image.
Try looking at a scene or subject from the obvious perspective and take some shots from different angles.
Avoid Distractions
Discern what you want your subject to be, and shoot so as to avoid distracting from that. Clutter in the background is one of the main offenders that can ruin an otherwise good shot. Angle yourself so that your son with his new birthday gift doesn抰 have a lot of competing wrapping paper, other toys, etc. in the background. And take care that no trees or telephone poles are growing out of your best friend抯 head at her anniversary party.
When you see distracting elements there are a few things you can do:
-Recompose by moving higher, lower or from a different angle yourself
-Move your subject (if you can)
-Blur the background out of focus with a wide aperture or pan a moving subject.
What if I want to change my composition after the fact?
There are many times that I will take a picture and realize later as I am looking at it on my computer screen that it would be a much better shot if I just placed the subject a little more to the side, or took the picture with a vertical rather than a horizontal orientation. Or perhaps I want to have more of a panoramic composition or more of a square rather than a full frame image.
Well my friends - that is what Photoshop (or just about any decent image editing program readily available) is for.
When you open up an image to edit, look at where the lines are leading the eye, think about where the subject placement would look best, remember the rule of thirds and crop accordingly.
One other note on cropping?If you know beforehand what size you may need to present or print your image in, be sure you allow enough space in your composition to allow for the change in aspect ratio. For example, most DSLRs take pictures in a 3:2 ratio (2x3, 4x6, 8x12, 20x30, etc.) Therefore, if you need to make a print in an 8x10 format, you will need to allow enough extra space on either end of your composition to crop off to create a 3:4 aspect ratio. And if you need a panoramic shot for a blog header, make sure all of your important subject matter is within that narrow frame or else you will lose parts of your subject.
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