Horoscope Fish
Senior Member
Some Opening Remarks Before We Get Down to Business
Hi all... This post is an introduction for a series of threads I'm launching for this sub-forum which will center on foundational, compositional techniques and guidelines. For purposes of this tutorial I am referring to composition as the way the elements of a photograph are combined or arranged within the frame. Good composition strengthens a photograph and makes it interesting while a lack of composition makes a photo weak and confusing. I've heard a lot about "Rules of Composition" but what I'm discovering is that these "rules" are really guidelines and this is my preferred usage; "guidelines". I'd like to explore some of these Guidelines of Composition and how putting them to work in our shots can strengthen our photography. All that being said I do not claim to be an expert of any sort; I encourage discussion and opposing viewpoints. What follow are my thoughts and experiences, foibles and all; and everything I say now is subject to modification later. Heck I may even contradict myself. Bonus Point awarded if you spot me blatantly contradicting myself.
As photographers we do not enjoy the luxury of being able to explain our photo's; nor is it the job of our audience to interpret what our photos mean. Rather, it is incumbent upon us, as the photographer, to give our photos a crystal-clear "speaking voice". We do this, in large part, with composition. When looking at a scene with our naked eye our brain does a lot of heavy lifting we are not consciously aware of; it selects points of interest and interprets what it sees but our camera does none of this. The camera captures all that is before it indiscriminately which, if not controlled, leads to a busy, sloppy shot that lacks clear communication. If you took the shot there must be reason why. Something drew you to what you saw, and now you want me to see it too.
To this end every photo needs a subject. Without a subject what’s the point of the photo? Every photo has elements but not every photo has a clear subject. The difference between “element” and “subject” is importance. While all subjects are elements, not all elements are subjects. The “subject” is the photo’s raison d'être, its reason for being. Everything else in the frame is a subordinate element and is either enhancing your subject, by giving it relevance or context for example, or the element is detracting from your subject, most commonly by being irrelevant and therefore distracting. My first lesson in composition was explained to me as, “taking out the trash”.
This was my instructors colorful way of saying I needed to scan my viewfinder edge-to-edge and corner-to-corner before actually taking the shot. I was told to look for elements that did not support my subject. I was to, “frame, scan and re-frame as necessary” before releasing the shutter. This taught me to really see - and think about - what I was shooting before I shot it. I now believe this to be a critical process. I used to get very focused (mentally) on my subject to the exclusion of all else. In doing so, I allowed subordinate elements into the frame which weakened the shot overall. I learned quickly it is far better to remove these distracting elements from the frame (take out the trash) by shuffling my feet than to try and crop them out later. Cropping, I’m fond of saying, is a harsh and unforgiving Mistress.
Bringing myself back to the matters at hand... To get things started I'm going to open with what I understand to be the two most basic types of photographic composition: "Open" composition and "Closed" composition. Exciting stuff! In future posts I want to investigate other guidelines of composition such as Balance, Symmetry, the "Guideline" of Thirds, Leading Lines, S-Curves, C-Curves, Centering, L-Shapes, V-Shapes and so on. It is my hope this will lead to a better understanding of composition for all, myself included. All that being said, I don’t want anything I say to be taken as absolute; I’m not a professor in charge of a class, I’m a student of photography trying to broaden my own understanding of my chosen hobby by initiating a conversation and sharing what little I have managed to pick up. I expect to learn as much or more than anyone here as there are some really outstanding photographers here on Nikonites that I hope will not hesitate to school me proper, now that I've lifted the lid on the proverbial pot and initiated this dialogue.
I *would* ask that posters please keep comments limited to the topic of Open and Closed composition while in this thread. If these tutorial threads are going to work, in a general sense, we're going to need to keep things on topic regardless of who initiates the thread. I don't want make it sound like I'm issuing a draconian decree, but I am. Okay, I'm kidding... But really, let's please try to keep our posts on topic; not just in this thread but in the tutorials threads in general. Lastly, if you haven't, I would urge you to review Jdeg's sticky at the top of this sub-forum.
.......
Hi all... This post is an introduction for a series of threads I'm launching for this sub-forum which will center on foundational, compositional techniques and guidelines. For purposes of this tutorial I am referring to composition as the way the elements of a photograph are combined or arranged within the frame. Good composition strengthens a photograph and makes it interesting while a lack of composition makes a photo weak and confusing. I've heard a lot about "Rules of Composition" but what I'm discovering is that these "rules" are really guidelines and this is my preferred usage; "guidelines". I'd like to explore some of these Guidelines of Composition and how putting them to work in our shots can strengthen our photography. All that being said I do not claim to be an expert of any sort; I encourage discussion and opposing viewpoints. What follow are my thoughts and experiences, foibles and all; and everything I say now is subject to modification later. Heck I may even contradict myself. Bonus Point awarded if you spot me blatantly contradicting myself.
As photographers we do not enjoy the luxury of being able to explain our photo's; nor is it the job of our audience to interpret what our photos mean. Rather, it is incumbent upon us, as the photographer, to give our photos a crystal-clear "speaking voice". We do this, in large part, with composition. When looking at a scene with our naked eye our brain does a lot of heavy lifting we are not consciously aware of; it selects points of interest and interprets what it sees but our camera does none of this. The camera captures all that is before it indiscriminately which, if not controlled, leads to a busy, sloppy shot that lacks clear communication. If you took the shot there must be reason why. Something drew you to what you saw, and now you want me to see it too.
To this end every photo needs a subject. Without a subject what’s the point of the photo? Every photo has elements but not every photo has a clear subject. The difference between “element” and “subject” is importance. While all subjects are elements, not all elements are subjects. The “subject” is the photo’s raison d'être, its reason for being. Everything else in the frame is a subordinate element and is either enhancing your subject, by giving it relevance or context for example, or the element is detracting from your subject, most commonly by being irrelevant and therefore distracting. My first lesson in composition was explained to me as, “taking out the trash”.
This was my instructors colorful way of saying I needed to scan my viewfinder edge-to-edge and corner-to-corner before actually taking the shot. I was told to look for elements that did not support my subject. I was to, “frame, scan and re-frame as necessary” before releasing the shutter. This taught me to really see - and think about - what I was shooting before I shot it. I now believe this to be a critical process. I used to get very focused (mentally) on my subject to the exclusion of all else. In doing so, I allowed subordinate elements into the frame which weakened the shot overall. I learned quickly it is far better to remove these distracting elements from the frame (take out the trash) by shuffling my feet than to try and crop them out later. Cropping, I’m fond of saying, is a harsh and unforgiving Mistress.
Bringing myself back to the matters at hand... To get things started I'm going to open with what I understand to be the two most basic types of photographic composition: "Open" composition and "Closed" composition. Exciting stuff! In future posts I want to investigate other guidelines of composition such as Balance, Symmetry, the "Guideline" of Thirds, Leading Lines, S-Curves, C-Curves, Centering, L-Shapes, V-Shapes and so on. It is my hope this will lead to a better understanding of composition for all, myself included. All that being said, I don’t want anything I say to be taken as absolute; I’m not a professor in charge of a class, I’m a student of photography trying to broaden my own understanding of my chosen hobby by initiating a conversation and sharing what little I have managed to pick up. I expect to learn as much or more than anyone here as there are some really outstanding photographers here on Nikonites that I hope will not hesitate to school me proper, now that I've lifted the lid on the proverbial pot and initiated this dialogue.
I *would* ask that posters please keep comments limited to the topic of Open and Closed composition while in this thread. If these tutorial threads are going to work, in a general sense, we're going to need to keep things on topic regardless of who initiates the thread. I don't want make it sound like I'm issuing a draconian decree, but I am. Okay, I'm kidding... But really, let's please try to keep our posts on topic; not just in this thread but in the tutorials threads in general. Lastly, if you haven't, I would urge you to review Jdeg's sticky at the top of this sub-forum.
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