Photography, the Golden Mean, and Geeky Coolness

The Rule Of Thirds dictates the placement of the focus of your photograph. Why?

The rule should actually be called the Rule Of The Golden Mean. Across cultures and history, creators such as artists and architects - and even composers and poets - have adopted the Golden Mean as a ratio that is pleasing to the human eye. Nobody is certain why, but a rectangle with sides in the ratio of 1:1.6180339887499... just seems to please the aesthetic sense of the human brain. Simply - it just looks good.

The ratio of height to width of the rule of thirds is 1:2/3 (or 2/3:1, depending on whether your photo is oriented down or across). This gives a ratio of 1.5. This ratio, however, is only an approximation of the Golden Mean, which is why the rule of thirds seems to work so well: it is building an approximation of the Golden Mean within the boundaries of your photo. Almost mystically, the Golden Mean seems to be a naturally occurring number, like pi or e. The Fibonacci series of numbers starts with 0 and 1, then adds two numbers to produce the next in the series:

0

1

2

3

5

8

13

21

34

55

etc.

Now, if you take successive ratios of consecutive numbers in the Fibonacci series, you get ratios that more and more closely approach the Golden Mean as you use higher and higher pairs of numbers.

What are some additional principles for creating an aesthetically pleasing composition?

Some other guidelines for creating a pleasing composition include the following:

• Simplicity: A composition is usually more appealing when it isn't overly crowded or chaotic. The most important components of the picture can be left out to achieve this.
  
• Balance: The elements can be balanced in a photograph by evenly distributing them within the frame. This lends an air of stability and order to the photo.
  
• Texture: Adding texture to a video can add interest and visual appeal. This may be done by including items with varied textures or using light and shade to generate texture.
  
• Pattern: Repetition of components may create a sense of rhythm and aesthetic appeal by repeating elements. Geometric patterns are one way to do this.
  
• Contrast: High-contrast images, such as those with bright light and dark shadows or distinct hues, may create a striking and eye-catching composition.

What Are Some Of The Most Frequently Made Mistakes When It Comes To Creating An Image?

Some common mistakes that people make when composing an image include the following:

• Taking into account only the frame: It's critical to consider what'll be included in the frame and what'll be excluded. This may be achieved by paying attention to the frame's edges and using the rule of thirds.
  
• The focal point is often more beautiful when it isn't centered. This might result in a more dynamic and interesting photograph..
  
• Busy backgrounds: A busy background may detract from the photo's focus. It is often preferable to have the subject in front of a simple backdrop to avoid this problem.
  
• A cluttered composition may be off-putting and unpleasant to look at. It is critical to keep only the most essential components in the frame to avoid this.
  

What other things should you think about while creating an image?

Some other factors to consider when composing an image include the following:

• Lighting: Excellent lighting may make a significant impact on the quality of an image. It's critical to notice the direction of the light and take advantage of it.
  
• Perspective: The viewpoint of an image may have a significant influence on the overall composition. This includes the angle from which the picture is shot as well as the distance between the subject and the camera.
  
• The topic of an image is something that piques the viewer's interest and is visually attractive. The construction, lighting, and perspective may be used to achieve this.

Sample Photos

Take a moment to think about how you want your photo to be divided into thirds both horizontally and vertically before taking the shot. The intersections of these imagined lines suggest four potential locations for the subject's focus in the frame. The choice you make is determined by the subject and how you want that topic to be presented.

Leave space for your action. The subject is positioned in the lower-left corner, which we've followed with The Rule Of Thirds and given him plenty of room to run within the frame. Space implies action and stasis. The following two images are the same photograph, cropped and sized differently.

You may also apply the rule of thirds principles to the placement of the horizon in your images. The boat and horizon are positioned in the center, which leads to a static aesthetic. In photography, a horizon line may be used to balance an image. Moving the horizon line up or down in an image can alter how everything looks together. The horizon line, for example, may be placed in the middle of a picture to convey stability, while placing the horizon line closer to the top or bottom of an image might create a sensation of movement.

Make sure the photos are balanced. Both the photo above and below follow The Rule Of Thirds, but only one is naturally balanced.

Sometimes, take that literally:

Most importantly, news photos have to tell a news story. What's going on here?

Obviously, there are many more methods for achieving visual harmony. Then there's the other side of the coin - how to use rulebreaking effectively to create compelling tension. But it is vital to understand and practice the fundamentals before departing from them.

Photographic Composition

Photographic composition is the pleasing arrangement of subject matter elements within the picture area. Creative photography depends foremost on the photographer's ability to see as the camera sees because a photograph does not reproduce a scene quite the way we see it. The camera sees and records only a small isolated part of the larger scene, reduces it to only two dimensions, frames it, and freezes it. It does not discriminate as we do. When we look at a scene we selectively see only the important elements and more or less ignore the rest. A camera, on the other hand, sees all the details within the field of view. This is the reason some of our pictures are often disappointing. Backgrounds may be cluttered with objects we do not remember, our subjects are smaller in the frame or less striking than we recall, or the entire scene may lack significance and life.

Good pictures are seldom created by chance. To make the most of any subject, you must understand the basic principles of composition. The way you arrange the elements of a scene within a picture, catch the viewer’s attention, please the eye, or make a clear statement are all qualities of good composition. By developing photographic composition skills, you can produce photographs that suggest movement, life, depth, shape, and form, recreating the impact of the original scene.

How are photographic composition skills developed? You look, you study, you practice. Every time you take a picture, look all around within the viewfinder. Consider the way each element will be recorded and how it relates to the overall composition. You must become thoroughly familiar with the camera and learn how the operation of each control alters the image. Experiment with the camera and look at the results carefully to see if they meet your expectations. With experience and knowledge of your equipment, you begin to "think through your camera" so you are free to concentrate on composition.

Devote serious study to the principles of good composition. Study books and magazine articles on composition. You should analyze various media: motion pictures, TV, magazines, books and newspapers, and evaluate what you see. What is good about this picture or that TV image? What is bad about it? What principles of good composition could you apply in a different way to make the picture better. Good or correct composition is impossible to define precisely. There are no hard-and-fast rules to follow that ensure good composition in every photograph. There are only the principles and elements that provide a means of achieving pleasing composition when applied properly. Some of these principles and elements are as follows:

• Center of interest
• Subject placement
• Simplicity
• Viewpoint and camera angle
• Balance
• Shapes and lines
• Pattern
• Volume
• Lighting
• Texture
• Tone
• Contrast
• Framing
• Foreground
• Background
• Perspective

As you study these principles of composition, you should soon come to a realization that some are very similar and overlap one another a great deal. Because all or most of these principles must be considered and applied each time you take a picture, it may all seem quite confusing at first. With experience you can develop a sense of composition, and your consideration and application of the principles will become almost second nature. This is not to suggest that you can allow yourself to become complacent or careless in the application of the principles of composition. Doing so will be immediately obvious because the results you produce will be snapshots, not professional photographs. The principles of composition that follow apply equally to both still and motion media photography.

Center Of Interest

Each picture should have only one principal idea, topic, or center of interest to which the viewer's eyes are attracted. Subordinate elements within the picture must support and focus attention on the principal feature so it alone is emphasized. A picture without a dominant center of interest or one with more than one dominant center of interest is puzzling to a viewer. Subsequently, the viewer becomes confused and wonders what the picture is all about. When the picture has one, and only one, dominant "point of interest," the viewer quickly understands the picture.

Note:

"Point of interest," as used here, has the same meaning as center of interest; however, using the term point of interest prevents giving the impression that the center of interest should be located in the center of the picture.

The specific topic, idea, or object to be portrayed must be set in your mind as you prepare to take a picture. When there is nothing in the picture to attract attention to a particular area or object, the eyes wander throughout the scene. The center of interest may be a single object or numerous ones arranged so attention is directed to one definite area. When the center of interest is a single object that fills most of the picture area or one that stands out boldly, such as a white sail against a background of dark water, attention is attracted immediately to it. As may be expected, not all subjects are as simple to arrange or as bold and impressive.

A photographer usually has at his or her disposal many factors or elements that can be used and arranged within the picture area to draw or direct attention to the primary idea of the picture. Some of these elements are lines, shapes, human figures, tone, and texture. Human figures attract attention more strongly than almost any other subject matter and unless they are the main object of the photograph should probably be kept out of the picture; for instance, a photograph showing a person standing at some distance in front of a building may leave the observer wondering whether the person or the building is the primary subject.

When people are included in a scene for comparative size of objects or just for atmosphere, keep them from looking directly at the camera. When people look at the camera and therefore at the viewer of the picture, the viewer tends to return their gaze by looking directly back into their eyes. When they are not the intended point of interest, we miss the statement and purpose of the picture. When people are subordinate elements within the picture and they are looking in a direction other than at the camera, the viewer’s attention is directed from the people to what they are looking at, which should be the center of interest; for example, when people are grouped around a piece of machinery that is the center of interest of the picture, have them look at the machine, rather than the camera.

Subject Placement

Sometimes good composition is obtained by placing the center of interest in the geometrical center of the picture; it is generally not a good idea to place it there. Too frequently it divides the picture into equal halves and makes the picture uninteresting and difficult to balance. By dividing the picture area into thirds, both vertically and horizontally, and locating the center of interest at one of the intersections of the imaginary lines, you can usually create a feeling of balance to the composition (fig. 5-5).

In photographic composition there are two general guides for determining the best location for the center of interest. The first is the principle of thirds. The other is dynamic symmetry. In the principle of thirds, the intersection of lines that divide the picture area into thirds are marked by O’s. These intersections are good locations for the center of interest in most photographs. Notice we said THE center of interest. Remember, have only one center of interest to a picture-keep it simple. The principle of dynamic symmetry is a similar idea. A good location for the center of interest is found by drawing or imagining a diagonal line from one corner to an opposite corner. Then, draw a second line perpendicular to the first from a third corner (fig. 5-6). The intersections of the lines are the location for the center of interest.

Simplicity

Simplicity is the key to most good pictures. The simpler and more direct a picture is, the clearer and stronger is the resulting statement. There are several things to be considered when we discuss simplicity. First, select a subject that lends itself to a simple arrangement; for example, instead of photographing an entire area that would confuse the viewer, frame in on some important element within the area. Second, select different viewpoints or camera angles. Move around the scene or object being photographed. View the scene through the camera viewfinder. Look at the foreground and background. Try high and low angles as well as normal eye-level viewpoints. Evaluate each view and angle. Only after considering all possibilities should you take the picture. See beyond and in front of your subject.

Be sure there is nothing in the background to distract the viewer's attention from the main point of the picture. Likewise, check to see there is nothing objectionable in the foreground to block the entrance of the human eye into the picture. A last point of simplicity-tell only one story. Ensure there is only enough material in the picture to convey one single idea. Although each picture is composed of numerous small parts and contributing elements, none should attract more of the viewer's attention than the primary object of the picture. The primary object is the reason the picture is being made in the first place; therefore, all other elements should merely support and emphasize the main object.

Do not allow the scene to be cluttered with confusing elements and lines that detract from the primary point of the picture. Select a viewpoint that eliminates distractions so the principal subject is readily recognized. When numerous lines or shapes are competing for interest with the subject, it is difficult to recognize the primary object or determine why the picture was made.

Viewpoint And Camera Angle

The proper viewpoint or camera angle is an important factor in good composition. Repositioning your subject within the viewfinder frame and changing the camera viewpoint or camera angle are two simple ways of controlling composition. Photographing from a different viewpoint or camera angle can often add drama and excitement or even bring out an unusual aspect of a subject. Most of the subjects you photograph are three-dimensional and should be photographed from an angle (to the right or left of and/or from higher or lower than the subject) that allows the viewer to see more than one side of the subject. The photographer should study the subject from different sides and angles.

Walk around the subject and look at it from all viewpoints. See it from elevated and low positions as well as from eye level to find the best composition. This greatly assists in composing the subject for the best balance and helps to select a background that compliments, not distracts from the subject. The terms viewpoint and camera angle are often used in conjunction with one another and sometimes used interchangeably. They can also have different meanings depending on how they are applied. Viewpoint" is the camera position in relation to the subject.

"Camera angle" is the angle in which the camera lens is tilted; for example, a picture of sailors marching, made from ground level with the camera held horizontal with reference to the ground, may be referred to as a "low viewpoint" (or camera position); however, when this picture is made, again from ground level, but with the camera pointed up, it may be referred to as a "low camera angle." Likewise, a picture made from an elevated or high position, with the camera again held horizontal with reference to the ground, or even pointed straight down, can be referred to as a "high viewpoint"; however, if the camera is not held horizontal to the ground or pointed straight down, but pointed at some angle between horizontal and vertical, the camera position could be referred to as a "high camera angle."

Eye-Level Shots

With the camera held horizontal, eye-level shots are usually made at a height of about 5 1/2 feet, the height from which the average adult sees, and with the camera horizontal. With the camera held at eye level but pointed up or down, the camera position changes and you have either a low or high camera angle, respectively.

Low Viewpoint And Low Camera Angle

Low viewpoints and low camera angles can add emphasis and interest to many ordinary photographs. A low viewpoint can be used to distort scale or add strength to a picture or to emphasize certain elements within the picture. A low camera angle is achieved when the camera angle is located below the point of primary interest and pointed upward. Low angles tend to lend strength and dominance to a subject and dramatize the subject. Low angle shots are used when dramatic impact is desired. This type of shot is very useful for separating the subject from the background, for eliminating unwanted foreground and background, and for creating the illusion of greater size and speed (fig. 5-7).

High Viewpoint And High Camera Angle

High viewpoints and high camera angles help orient the viewer, because they show relationships among all elements within the picture area and produce a psychological effect by minimizing the apparent strength or size of the subject (fig. 5-8).

Balance

Balance in photographic composition is a matter of making pictures look harmonious. Each element in a picture has a certain amount of value in respect to all the other elements. Every tone, mass, shape, tree, rock figure, building, line, or shadow contributes a certain amount of weight that must be arranged correctly in the composition to give the impression of balance. The subject placement within the picture area is the factor that must be carefully considered. Composition is kept in balance by two different methods: symmetrical, or formal, balance and asymmetrical, or informal, balance.

Symmetrical Or Formal Balance

Symmetrical or formal balance in a photograph is achieved when elements on both sides of the picture are of equal weight (fig. 5-9A). The idea of formal balance can be related to a seesaw, When there are two equally weighted objects on the seesaw and they are equidistant from the pivot point, or fulcrum, the board will be in balance.

Pictures with formal balance may look static and unexciting; however, they do present an air of dignity. Formal balance does not always mean a picture has to the seesaw in perspective. The forces or weights are symmetrical. Symmetrical pictures, in which both are presumed to be approximately equal; but, the imaginary sides are exactly the same, are produced only when your pivot point is set deep into the picture space. With this want a special effect; therefore, they are not often variation to symmetrical balance, a more interesting product. A variation of symmetrical balance deals with photographs is usually created (fig. 5-9B).

Asymmetrical Or Informal Balance

Asymmetrical, or informal, balance is usually much more interesting than symmetrical balance. In asymmetrical balance the imaginary central pivot point is still presumed to be present; however, instead of mirror images on each side of the picture area, the subject elements are notably different in size, shape, weight, tone, and placement. Balance is established by equalizing the element forces in spite of their differences.

Asymmetrical balance is introduced when the presumed weight of two or more lighter objects is equalized by a single heavier object placed on the other side of the imaginary pivot point (fig. 5-10). Asymmetrical balance is more difficult to achieve than symmetrical balance, because of the problem of establishing relative weight values for dissimilar elements within the picture area as well as presenting some form of stability.

Aspects Of Balance

There are many other factors to consider in order to make pictures appear balanced. Some of these are as follows:

• An object far from the center of the picture seems to have more weight than one near the center.
• Objects in the upperpart of a picture seem heavier than objects of the same size in the lower part of a picture.
• Isolation seems to increase the weight of an object.
• Intensely interesting objects seem to have more compositional weight.
• Regular shapes seem to have more weight than irregular shapes.
• Elements on the right side of an asymmetrical picture appear to have more weight than elements of the same size on the left side of the picture.
• The directions in which figures, lines, and shapes appear to be moving within the picture area are important to balance; for example, a person may be walking in a direction, or his eyes may be looking in a direction, or the shape of some element creates a feeling of movement. When the feeling of direction is present within a scene, it tends to upset the balance if judged on the size of the subject alone.

Understanding the factors required to create pictorial balance is essential for you to produce good pictures. To gain this understanding, you can continually test your feelings for balance as you look through your camera viewfinder. Once you gain an understanding of the principles of pictorial balance, achieving balance in your photographs becomes an easy process.

Design Principles

The term strength pertains to the ability of your image to attract the viewer's attention. You should remember that the average person viewing images has an attention span approximating that of a three-year-old child.  If you're not able to gain attention immediately, your image will be discarded. Clarity refers to the ability of your image to maintain the viewer's interest.  This is accomplished by allowing the viewer to explore the parts and subtleties of the image.  You must provide a mechanism for the viewer's eye to use to examine all parts of the scene and return to the main focus.  

The viewer will abandon the image before examining the various parts and subtleties if the image lacks strength.  Both strength and clarity must be present.

In composition, there are several principles and elements available to enhance strength and clarity.  While composing the image, the photographer becomes a chef who takes a certain number of ingredients and mixes them in just the right proportion to create a presentable dish.  Initially, a photographer must determine which design principles are important for creating the image.

Design elements include the following:

• Eye flow
• Elements in the scene that guide the viewer's eye through the entire frame.
• Dominant element
• Usually there is one main subject to the image.  The subject may be either a single object, or a relationship.
• Simplicity
• Only what is essential to the scene is included in the final image.
• Balance

A second consideration is the application of design elements to create clarity in such familiar applications such as:

• Lines
• Shapes
• Patterns
• Textures
• Color (Tone)

Finally, there are photographic elements that add strength to the image.  These elements include such aspects as:

• Format (portrait or landscape)
• Placement of the main elements
• Lens Selection
• Focusing
• Perspective

One method of creating strength in an image is to create focal points that draw the viewer's eye to that area.  Focal points compel the viewer to look at them first.  There are several techniques that create strong focal points.  First, the photographer can isolate the subject.  Throwing everything in the scene out of focus except for the main subject is one example of this technique.  The viewer's eye is attracted to whatever is sharp in the image.  The viewer's eye generally will not remain very long in an area that is out of focus.  However, when everything is in sharp focus, the image becomes cluttered and won't hold the viewer's attention.  Having too many things to look at causes fatigue in the viewer's eye.  

Having a contrast in tone or color between parts of the image is another method that creates a strong focal point. When you're dividing the image space by tone or color, it's important to examine how the division occurs. If the image is equally divided between two tones, the viewer becomes confused, because each portion of the image has equal weight. For example, consider the classic sunset image. If the horizon line is placed in the center of the frame, both the sky and water take up an equal amount of space. The viewer feels uneasy, because the photographer didn't provide any visual clues as to what is most important in the scene. This type of image lacks strength, and the viewer will quickly abandon it. One curative option is to lower the horizon, which places emphasis on the clouds in the sky. Raising the horizon places emphasis on the reflections in the water. Which is best? The photographer must decide whether the sky or water is more attractive. If the photographer can't decide and splits the frame equally, their indecisiveness will be apparent to the viewer.

Placement of elements in the frame can also create focal points. Key placement questions to consider include what, how, and where to place elements in the scene. You should articulate what attracts you in the scene. That will dictate what to place in the final image. If the photographer can't articulate what causes their personal passion in a scene, passion won't come across to the viewer. How you place something in the image refers to whether the element is fully or partially visible. Showing the entire element increases the attentive values of that element. Partially showing the element decreases the emphasis on that element.  

When you want to stress the relationship between two elements in the scene, rather than the elements individually, place them partially out of the image or near the edges of the frame. Where to place the main elements in the image is the final consideration for attracting the viewer's attention. The Rule of Thirds is the most common method for determining where to place the main elements. It's based on the concept that the strength of an image improves when the main elements are placed at key locations away from the center of the frame.

We've been programmed to locate main elements in the center of the frame.  Do you remember when you were a child, and the teacher told you to draw a red flower with your crayon?  Where did you place it?  You probably began in the center of the page.  Why?  There was lots of room there, so you could draw the entire flower.  

Your first camera was probably of the point-and-shoot variety.  The only area that confirmed the subject was in focus was the focus point in the center of the camera lens.  If you can determine focus in the center of your field of view, isn't it logical to place your subject there?  The problem, of course, is that placing the subject in the center of the frame normally provides little interest for the viewer.  The brain is logical. If the brain subconsciously expects to find something in the center of a picture, and it's located there, no excitement is generated.  Placing the subject away from the center provides visual stimulation.

Rule of Thirds

Before talking about when it's permissible to break the Rule of Thirds, let's make sure that we understand how it works.  Several schools of thought in ancient Greece searched for mathematical formulas for the perfect number, chord, etc. They also searched for perfect balance in their artwork.  Renaissance architects and painters continued the search for perfection.  They decided that the relationship of five to eight created such balance.  Divide the length of the canvas (or picture frame) into eight parts, and at the fifth mark from the left, draw a line from top to bottom.  Count five parts, starting from the opposite side, and do the same thing.  Draw two lines in the same manner from the width of the frame, and the end result is figure 1 below.

This is called the Golden Triangle because it represents the perfect division of space. The points where the lines intersect are called power points. Placing your main subject at one of the power points gives it a high attentive value and adds strength to your image. If there's more than one main subject, placing each at a power point provides balance and strength.

It's difficult to visually divide the viewfinder into eight equal parts. Therefore, it's easier to use the Rule of Thirds, which divides the viewfinder into three sections, both horizontally and vertically. As you can see from Figure 2 (at right), the Golden Mean is a tighter grouping than the Rule of Thirds. Both methods use the power point concept for placing the main subject(s).

The image below (the rose surrounded by baby's breath) demonstrates locating the subject according to the Rule of Thirds.  The placement, as well as the color contrast, almost requires the viewer's eye to go to the rose first.  After stopping at the rose, the eye is free to wander about the rest of the image to explore its content.  Therefore, the image has both strength and clarity.

Consider the Rule of Thirds to be the Guidelines of Thirds.  If the main subject is always placed at one of four points in the frame, creativity suffers.  There are many situations where using the Rule of Thirds will enhance the image.  Other situations require more creativity, and that means bending or breaking this rule.

The Rule of Thirds discourages placing an important element in the center of the frame.  However, there are two situations when a centrally placed element works effectively.  The first situation arises when there's nothing else in the scene that competes with the main subject.  If a flower is in sharp focus and everything else is out of focus, the viewer's eye will go to the flower--no matter where it's placed in the scene.  Placing the flower in the center of the frameworks, in this instance, because the flower is a complete subject on its own, and there are no other elements to compete with the flower.

The other situation in which a centrally placed element works occurs when there's a strong sense of balance in the scene.  Imagine the hub of a wooden wagon wheel.  The hub can be placed in the center, because the radiating spokes suggest a strong balance within the scene.  Placing a strong horizontal line in the center of the frame works only when one half of the scene is reflected in the other half.  Notice that the image below has a strong horizontal line (tree line) in the center of the frame.  The image works due to the strong sense of balance in the scene.  In this case, placing the horizontal line anywhere else in the frame would degrade the image dramatically.  

As stated previously, placing the horizon in the center of the frame can confuse the viewer as to what's important.  The underlying structure of the Rule of Thirds allows us to modify the location of the horizon to send a clear message to the viewer. The Rule of Thirds can be used to visually weigh an image. Visual weight differs from physical weight.  Light colors have less visual weight than dark colors when they fill approximately the same amount of space in the frame.  Thus, a large mound of dark feathers appears heavier than a white rabbit of equal size.  Also, an element that takes up more physical space in the frame has more visual weight than an element that uses less space.

We can bottom weight an image by placing the top of our visually weighted element along the lower horizontal line of our Rule of Thirds grid.  Locating the top of the element below the lower horizontal line places gives it less emphasis.  It's up to the photographer to determine how much emphasis should be placed on each element in the scene.  The image below is an example of a bottom-weighted image.

Placing the visual weight at the bottom of the image puts emphasis on the upper portions of the image.  In the image to the left, it's really the interesting clouds that make the image.  The mountains simply provide a sense of place.  If the mountains were seen higher in the image, they would detract from the clouds.  The image would change and not be as interesting.

We can also top-weight an image by placing it along the upper horizontal line in the Rule of Thirds grid.  The two images below are both top-weighted. You probably get a different feel from each of them - even though they're both images of the Grand Tetons taken from the same tripod holes.  The difference is that the image on the right has a stronger base.  When you build a house, it needs to have a strong foundation to stand.

The same is true with an image.  The Grand Tetons have a lot of visual weight.  The viewer can easily determine that they are heavy.  In contrast, the grassland in the foreground of each image doesn't represent weight.  Top-weighting an image without a strong base makes the weighted object appear to be floating on a surface that won't support it.  Therefore, the viewer senses something doesn't appear right in the image, even if they can't verbalize the problem.  The above images are extreme examples. The image on the above left has a weak base because the bottom of the mountains is too high. The image on the right represents moving the bottom of the mountain to an extremely low base. It sends a better message about the solid feel of the image. Probably the best location for the bottom of the mountain would be somewhere between both images.

A weak base is especially obvious in top-weighted images involving water in the foreground.  Unless there's some other foreground object, the viewer can feel uncomfortable with nothing but water supporting the mountain, city buildings, or other objects.  Place a finger over the bottom third of the image to the left.   When you cover the rocks in the foreground, do you get the feeling that the mountain is floating on the water?  We know that mountains can't float, so the viewer may feel some negative tension from the image.

In top-weighted images, the photographer must decide whether a top-weighted image is supported by the foreground and how much foreground to include.  Although it's your decision, be aware of the concept of base and potential viewer reaction to the shot. We used the horizontal grid lines of the Rule of Thirds to create either top or bottom weight in our image.  The vertical grid lines can also be used; it's called side-weighting.  The image below right is an example of using the left vertical line of the grid to locate the main element of the image.  Notice that the small stream of water is placed along the other vertical line in the grid.  Placing the main element closer to the edge puts less emphasis on that element.  On some occasions, leaving part of the element out of the scene creates an emphasis on the relationship between that element and another element in the scene.

While the main element can be placed on either vertical line, care must be taken to avoid creating negative tension.  If there's any action, or implied action, in the scene, the action should normally be located toward the center of the frame.  For example, if the main element of the scene were a bicyclist, the bicycle would move from the edge of the frame toward the center.  If the bicycle were located at either vertical line and appeared to move toward the closer edge of the frame, the viewer might wonder where the bicycle will go once it leaves the frame.  This situation is called amputation, because the edge of the frame cuts off the ability of the viewer to follow the anticipated action.  Any implied action, such as a person looking out of the frame, can cause the same result.

Counter culture placement of the subject is another way of increasing tension in a photo.  In western culture, movement is generally left to right.  That's how you're reading this page.  If the movement in the scene is from right to left (even though it's moving toward the center), it can create negative tension for western viewers. The next set of three images shows a wolf looking in different directions.  You'll probably receive a different feeling from each of the images--depending on the direction of the wolf's stare.  Do any of the images give you a feeling of nervousness or curiosity?

Remember my earlier statement that rigidly following rules discourages creativity.  There may be occasions when you want to add negative tension to a scene to create a certain mood.  Intentionally creating a feeling of amputation can add mystery. Counter-cultural movement inserts a subtle tension that many people feel but can't verbalize. The question boils down to the photographer being able to say what's important in the scene, and then to create circumstances that will allow the viewer to receive the intended message.

Thus far, we've discussed the Rule of Thirds as a basic model and expanded it into a creative approach for placing the main subject in the frame. The preceding suggestions will add strength and generate viewer attention to your images. The Golden Mean and Rule of Thirds provide a sense of order, balance, and beauty to the image. But is this all we want to say in photography?  Using only the Rule of Thirds will eventually create monotonous, boring shots where placement is always the same as regulated by the rule. To maintain viewer interest, you need variety, and that comes from creative placement. Let your creativity be your guide!

Outdoor Lighting

As a photographer, you work with light to produce quality pictures. The color, direction, quantity, and quality of the light you use determines how your subjects appear. In the studio, with artificial light sources, you can precisely control these four effects; however, most of the pictures you make are taken outdoors. Daylight and sunlight are not a constant source, because they change hourly and with the weather, season, location, and latitude. This changing daylight can alter the apparent shapes, colors, tones, and forms of a scene. The color of sunlight changes most rapidly at the extreme ends of the day. Strong color changes also occur during storms, haze, or mist and on blue wintery days. The direction of light changes as the sun moves across the sky. The shape and direction of shadows are altered, and the different directions of sunlight greatly affect the appearance of a scene.

The quality of sunlight depends on its strength and direction. Strong, direct sunlight is "hard" because it produces dark, well-defined shadows and brilliant highlights, with strong modeling of form. Sunlight is hardest on clear summer days at noon. Strong sunlight makes strong colors more brilliant, but weak colors pale. Sunlight is diffused by haze, mist, and pollution in the air. This diffused or reflected light is softer; it produces weak, soft shadows and dull highlights. Directionless, diffused sunlight is often called "flat" lighting because it produces fine detail but subdues or flattens form. Weak, directionless sunlight provides vibrant, well-saturated colors.

Frontlighting

The old adage about keeping the sun at your back is a good place to continue our discussion of outdoor lighting. The type of lighting created when the sun is in back of the photographer is called frontlighting. This over-the-shoulder lighting was probably the first photographic advice you ever received. This may seem to be a universal recipe for good photography. But it is not. The case against over-the-shoulder lighting is it produces a flattened effect, doing nothing to bring out detail or provide an impression of depth. The human eye sees in three dimensions and can compensate for poor lighting. A photograph is only two-dimensional; therefore, to give an impression of form, depth, and texture to the subject, you should ideally have the light come from the side or at least at an angle.

Side Lighting

As you gain experience with various types of outdoor lighting, you discover that interesting effects can be achieved by changing the angle of the light falling on your subject. As you turn your subject, change the camera viewpoint, or wait for the sun to move, the light falls more on one side, and more shadows are cast on the opposite side of the subject. For pictures in which rendering texture is important, side lighting is ideal.

Look at a brick wall, first in direct front sunlight and then in side lighting. Direct, front sunlight shows the pattern of the bricks and mortar in a flat, uninformative way, but side lighting creates shadows in every little crevice (fig. 5-24). The effect increases as the light is more parallel with the wall until long shadows fall from the smallest irregularity in the brickwork This can give an almost 3-D effect to a photograph.

Side lighting is particularly important with black-and- white photography that relies on gray tones, rather than color, to record the subject. Shadows caused by side lighting reveal details that can create striking pictures from ordinary objects that are otherwise hardly worth photographing in black and white. Anything that has a noticeable texture-like the ripples of sand on a beach, for example-gains impact when lit from the side. Landscapes, buildings, people, all look better when sidelighted.

This applies to color photography as well. Color gives the viewer extra information about the subject that may make up for a lack of texture in frontlighting, but often the result is much better when lit from the side. Pictures made with side lighting usually have harsh shadows and are contrasty. To lighten the shadows and reduce the contrast, you may want to use some type of reflector to direct additional skylight into the shadow areas or use fill-in flash, whichever is more convenient.

Backlighting

When the sun is in front of the photographer, coming directly at the camera, you have what is referred to as backlighting; that is, the subject is backlit. This type of lighting can be very effective for pictures of people outdoors in bright sunlight. In bright sunlight, when subjects are front-lighted or even sidelighted, they may be uncomfortable and squint their eyes. Backlighting helps to eliminate this problem. Backlighting may also require the use of a reflector or fill-in flash to brighten up the dark shadows and improve subject detail. Backlighting is also used to produce a silhouette effect. When you use backlighting, avoid having the sun rays fall directly on the lens (except for special effects). A lens hood or some other means of shading the lens should be used to prevent lens flare.

Existing Light

Existing light photography, sometimes called available or natural light photography, is the making of pictures by the light that happens to be on the scene. This includes light from table, floor, and ceiling lights, neon signs, windows, skylights, candles, fireplaces, automobile headlights, and any other type of light that provides the natural lighting of a scene-except daylight outdoors. (Moonlight is considered an existing light.) Existing light then is that type of light found in the home, in the office, in the hangar bay, in the chapel, in the club, in the sports arenas, and so on. Outdoor scenes at twilight or after dark are also existing light situations.

Photography by existing light produces pictures that look natural. Even the most skillfully lighted flash picture may look artificial when compared to a good existing light photography. With existing light photography, the photographer has an opportunity to make dramatic, creative pictures. Existing light allows the photographer greater freedom of movement because extra lighting equipment is not required. Subject distance, when not using flash, has no effect on exposure; therefore, you can easily photograph distant subjects that could not otherwise be photographed using flash or some other means of auxiliary lighting. With existing light, you can make pictures that could not be taken with other types of lighting; for example, flash may not be appropriate during a change of command ceremony or chapel service. Not only can the flash disturb the proceedings, but it may not carry far enough to light the subject adequately.

For existing light pictures, your camera should be equipped with a fast lens-at least f/2.8, but preferably about f/1.4. The camera shutter should have a B or T setting, and for exposures longer than about 1/60 second, you need a tripod or other means of supporting the camera.

Because the level of illumination for many existing light scenes is quite low, you may want to consider using a high-speed film. When making pictures with plenty of existing light or when you particularly want long exposures for special effect, you can use a slower film; however, the advantages of high-speed film are as follows:

• Allows you to get adequate exposure for hand-held shots.
• Allows you to use faster shutter speeds to reduce camera and image motion.
• Permits the use of longer focal-length lenses when the camera is hand-held.
• Allows the use of smaller f/stops for greater depth of field.

When you are making existing-light color pictures indoors of scenes illuminated by tungsten light, use a tungsten type of film. When the light for your indoor color pictures is daylight from a window or skylight, use a daylight type of color film or use tungsten film with a No. 85B filter. Always use an exposure meter to calculate your indoor existing light exposure. When a bright window is included in the background, take a closeup meter reading of the subject to prevent the meter from being overly influenced by light from the window.

Pictures made indoors by existing daylight are pleasing to the viewer, because of the soft diffused light and the squint-free expression of your subjects. Open all the window drapes in the room to get the highest level of illumination possible. Pose your subject to allow diffused daylight to fall on the front or side of their face.Try not to pose your subject in a position where too much of the facial features are in shadow, unless you are trying for a special effect, such as a silhouette. When you photograph your subject in direct non diffused sunlight coming through a window, you have more light to work with, but the light is contrasty and your subject has a tendency to squint.

Indoor existing light, artificial or otherwise, may be quite contrasty; for example, when your subjects are close to the source of light and well-illuminated, while other areas of the scene are comparatively dark.

By turning on all the lights in the room, you can make the illumination more even and provide additional light for exposure and at the same time reduce the scene contrast. The contrast created by some artificial lighting can also be reduced in an average size room by bouncing auxiliary light off the ceiling or by using reflectors. Adding auxiliary bounce lighting or reflectors means you are not making true existing light pictures, but this extra light helps to reduce contrast without spoiling the natural appearance of the scene.

Fluorescent Lighting

Indoor scenes illuminated by fluorescent lights usually appear pleasing and natural in real life; however, color pictures of these same scenes often have an overall color cast that makes them appear unnatural. Fluorescent light emits blue and green light primarily and is deficient in red light. Most color pictures made without a filter under fluorescent light are also deficient in red and have an overall greenish appearance. Used correctly, fluorescent light has some advantages over other types of available light.

A room illuminated by fluorescent lamps is usually brighter and more evenly lighted than a room illuminated by tungsten lamps. This higher level of light makes it easier to get enough exposure for your existing light photography and helps record detail that may have been lost in the shadow areas with other types of existing light. When photographing people, however, fluorescent lighting often causes dark shadows under the subject's eyes. These shadows cause the eyes to appear dark and sunk in.

For making color pictures under fluorescent lighting, a negative color film with the appropriate filter is most often your best bet. Color negative film has a wide exposure latitude that permits, to some extent, a variation in exposure without detracting from the quality of the finished print. The greenish effect caused by fluorescent lighting can be partially corrected when the color negatives are printed. For color slides with fluorescent light, a daylight type of film with the appropriate filter is best. Tungsten film usually produces slides with too much blue or green when made with fluorescent light.

Pictures Outdoors at Night

Outdoor night scenes usually include large areas of darkness broken by smaller areas of light from buildings, signs, and streetlights. Pictures of outdoor scenes are quite easy to make because good results are obtainable over a wide range of exposures. Using short exposures emphasizes well-lit areas by preserving the highlight detail, while the shadow areas are dark because of underexposure. Long exposures help retain the detail of the dark areas, while highlight detail is lost because of overexposure.

Large, dark areas in night scenes make it difficult to make accurate exposure meter readings from your camera position. The best meter reading results are obtained when you take closeup readings of important scene areas. Color outdoor pictures at night can be made on either daylight or tungsten-type films. Pictures made on daylight film have a warm, yellow-red appearance. Those made on tungsten film have a colder, more natural look; however, both films provide pleasing results, so it is a matter of personal preference which you use. A good time to make outdoor night color pictures is just before it gets completely dark. At this time, some rich blue (or even orange) is in the sky.

This deep color at dusk gives a dramatic background to your pictures. Neon signs, streetlights, and building lights make bright subjects for your pictures. At night, right after it stops raining and everything is still wet, is another good time to take outdoor pictures. The lights in the scene produce many colorful reflections on the wet pavement, adding interest to what may otherwise be a lifeless, dull picture. Many buildings look rather ordinary in daylight, but at night, they are often interestingly lit. Try photographing the hangar at night, with the lights on and the hangar doors open. Also, your ship at night, especially a rainy night may make a very striking picture.

Outdoor events that take place at night in a sports stadium are usually well-lighted and make excellent subjects for existing light pictures. Most sports stadiums (as well as streets) are illuminated by mercury-vapor lamps that look blue-green in color when compared to tungsten lamps. Your best color pictures made under mercury-vapor lighting will be shot on daylight color film, although they will appear bluish green because the lights are deficient in red.

Some tips for existing light photography are as follows:

• Carry a flashlight so you can see to make camera settings.
• If you do not have an exposure meter or cannot get a good reading, bracket your exposure.
• Focus carefully; depth of field is shallow at the wide apertures required for existing light photography.
• When you have a scene illuminated by a combination of light sources, use the type of color film recommended for the predominant light source.
• For pictures of fireworks, support your camera on a tripod, focus at infinity, and aim the camera toward the sky area where the display will take place. Open the shutter for several bursts.

To sum it up, light is the single most important element in photography. It is what makes a photograph possible and without it, there would be no image. The quality, quantity, direction, and color of light all play a role in the final outcome of a photograph. Light can create mood and emotion in an image, it can add drama or make a scene seem calm and serene. Some use natural light while others prefer artificial light, but both can be used to great effect. Different lighting techniques can produce vastly different results so it is important for you as a photographer to understand how to use light to their best advantage.

Rule of Thirds

The Rule of Thirds is one of the most fundamental guidelines in photography composition. It states that an image should be divided into nine equal parts by two horizontal and two vertical lines, and that the important elements of the scene should be placed along these lines or at the intersections. The theory is that this arrangement is more pleasing to the eye than a centered composition, and it can also help to create a sense of movement or tension. In practice, the Rule of Thirds simply provides a starting point for composing an image. It's up to the photographer to decide whether to follow it strictly or to use it as a tool for creating more interesting and dynamic compositions.

Golden Ratio

The Golden Ratio is a similar but more mathematically complex guideline. It's based on the Fibonacci sequence, in which each number is the sum of the two previous numbers: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, etc. The Golden Ratio can be expressed as a proportion: 1 : 1.618 (or approximately 1 : 1.6). This proportion can be applied to any rectangle, and when doing so, the resulting shape is said to have a "golden" aspect ratio. The Golden Ratio has been used for centuries by artists and architects as a guide for creating harmonious compositions. In recent years, it has also been applied to the field of web design, and it's often used as a starting point for creating responsive layouts.

How To Use It

When composing a photo using the Rule of Thirds, it's important to keep the horizon line in mind, as this can be used to create a sense of balance. In addition, placing the subject off-center can often lead to a more dynamic and interesting composition. The Rule of Thirds is a classic photography composition technique that involves dividing your frame into thirds, both horizontally and vertically. The idea is to place your subject matter on one of the resulting intersections or along one of the lines. This simple technique can help to create more balance and interest in your photos.

For beginners, here are a few tips on how to get started with the Rule of Thirds:

• Start by framing your shots using the rule of thirds grid. This will help you to get a feel for where to position your subjects.
• Don't be afraid to experiment! The rule of thirds is a guideline, not a hard and fast rule. Sometimes breaking the rules can lead to more interesting compositions.
• Remember that the rule of thirds can be applied to more than just the placement of your subject. You can also use it to determine the placement of other elements in the frame, such as horizon lines and leading lines.

As it was said the Golden Ratio affects the ratio (1:1.618) of a picture size, as well as the placement of the main subjects in the photo. This ratio is close to the 35mm ratio, so you don't need to change the size of the photo in most cases. But you need to consider the composition: the main subject should lie on one of the four lines or four intersections (subject's eye for example). Truthfully speaking, these rules are not always the same. Rule of Thirds is just a simplified version of the Golden Mean.

Golden Triangles

Another rule is the Golden Triangles. It's more convenient for photos with diagonal lines and is used to create more dynamic and interesting compositions. The golden triangles are two equilateral triangles placed overlapping each other to form a triangle twice as big as the original triangle. The smaller triangle has its vertex at the center of the larger triangle's side, and the other vertices of each triangle are at the midpoints of the sides of the larger triangle.

The Golden Triangles can be used for dividing a frame in photography for more pleasurable compositions. This method is also called Fibonacci Triangle Spirals or Fibonacci Rectangles. Dividing a rectangle into a golden triangle creates unique compositions that are very pleasing to look at. The long sides of the golden triangle correspond to the long sides of the frame, while the short side corresponds to the short side of the frame. This results in a unique aspect ratio that is different from traditional rectangles.

Such a method can be used for any type of photography, from portraits to landscapes and even for cinematography and video editing. You may start by framing your shots using the golden triangles grid. This will help you to get a feel for where to position your subjects.

Golden Spiral or Golden Rectangle

And one more rule is a Golden Spiral or Golden Rectangle (you'll see why it's a rectangle in the tools section). The Golden Spiral is a fascinating mathematical concept with far-reaching implications. Also known as the Fibonacci Sequence, this pattern can be found in nature, art, and even music. But what exactly is the Golden Spiral? And why is it so important? Well, it turns out that this sequence can be used to create a never-ending spiral. If we plot these numbers on a graph and connect them with straight lines, we begin to see a spiral shape emerge. This spiral gets wider and wider as it goes around in a circle, but it never crosses over itself or reaches an end. In other words, it's infinite!

But that's not all. The Golden Spiral also appears in nature. For example, many sea creatures have shells that follow this pattern. The florets of a sunflower are arranged in a Golden Spiral. Even our own DNA molecule has a double helix shape that resembles a Golden Spiral! Clearly, the Golden Spiral is a fascinating concept with wide-ranging implications. It's no wonder that this unique pattern has captivated the imaginations of mathematicians and scientists for centuries. Who knows what else we may discover about this intriguing shape in the future?

There should be something, leading the eye to the center of the composition. It could be a line or several subjects. This "something" could just be there without leading the eyes, but it will fulfill its purpose anyway. The most important thing is that all these rules should serve you as an inspiration and help you to make more interesting compositions, but not to restrict your creativity

in any way.

Another crucial guideline is to pay attention to the scene's composition before you shoot it. Take a few minutes to look around and find interesting compositions. Imagining how the environment will appear as a photograph and then setting up your camera accordingly may help you capture a stunning picture. You'll be much more likely than not to get a good shot if you prepare it ahead of time instead of just taking it without thinking about what you're doing. One of the most common reasons why certain photographs are more appealing than others is due to their excellent composition. That's what this article is all about. We'll look at how composition may help you improve your photographs and will start with the most essential aspect of composition - The Rule Of Thirds.

The Rule of Thirds

The Rule Of Thirds is one of the most essential principles for better photographic composition. The Rule Of Thirds is a guideline that states that an image should be more pleasant to the eye if the subject is not centered in the frame, but rather off to one side. This generates a more dynamic and intriguing composition. Simply consider a tic-tac-toe board over your picture to utilize the rule of thirds. Place your subject at the intersections or along the lines of the grid. This will result in a more aesthetically attractive composition. Of course, there are times when centering your subject might result in a more powerful shot, so don't be scared to defy the rules from time to time. The important thing is to be conscious of the rule of thirds and apply it when appropriate.

The Golden Ratio is a more mathematically sophisticated version of the same idea. It's based on the Fibonacci sequence, in which each number is the sum of the two preceding ones: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34. The Golden Ratio can be represented as a proportion approximately 1 :1.6. Generally speaking, Rule of Thirds is just a simplified version of the Golden Ratio.

For those just getting started, here are a few pointers on how to use the Rule of Thirds:

• Frame your shots using the rule of thirds grid. This will help you get a sense for where to put your subjects.
• Don't be scared to experiment! The Rule Of Thirds is a suggestion rather than a hard and fast law. Sometimes disregarding conventional wisdom may result in more creative images.
• Remember that The Rule Of Thirds can be applied to many other aspects of composition. It may also be used to place other components in the frame, such as horizon lines and leading lines, similar to how it's done with subject placement.

Interesting fact, The Rule of Thirds was the creation of painters in the Renaissance. While the rule of thirds is often associated with photography, it can also be applied to other forms of art, such as painting and sculpture. Indeed, many Renaissance artists used the rule of thirds to create harmonious compositions. The aim of this style of composition is to provide a bit of background in the photo, to allow the photo to tell a story. Renaissance painters found that the eye doesn't rest on the center of a photograph.

Figure 1. The Rule of Thirds

Simply the Rule Of Thirds states that an object of attention should be placed at the intersection of the dividing lines (green dots). But you can also place the object along one of the dividing lines.

Figure 2. Can also be expressed horizontally

Figure 3. Horizontal example of the Rule Of Thirds

Figure 4. Vertically

Figure 5. More vertical examples of the Rule Of Thirds

Before you snap the picture, imagine your picture area divided into thirds both horizontally and vertically. The intersections of these imaginary lines suggest four options for placing the center of interest for good composition. The option you select depends upon the subject and how you would like that subject to be presented.

The whole aim of the Rule Of Thirds is to create a photograph which captures attention. The Rule Of Thirds does that by using human instinct. Most people's attention doesn't travel to the center of a photograph, it scans the edges. This is probably rooted in human instinct developed when man had to avoid saber-tooth tigers and the like. So if your attention doesn't go for the middle then why should your subject be there?

Also you aren't limited to just one subject. You can do two or more. Then it's recommended that you place the main subject on one dividing line and a secondary subject on another.

Figure 6. Multiple subjects according to the Rule Of Thirds

The Rule Of Thirds enhances the impression of action. If an object is traveling from left to right, then placing it on the left side would give it the impression that it is going to slide into the right side.

Figure 7. "Sliding into the frame" But this isn't an "etched in stone" kind of rule.

Figure 8. "Sliding out of the frame"

Also in landscapes The rule of thirds can give the pictures a bias. If your horizon is centered, people will wonder if it's a land shot or a sky shot. Placing the horizon at a line, then tells the viewer that this is a sky or land shot without having them to guess.

Figure 9. Sky at sunset shot

After you've learnt the rules, you'll see that well-composed photos generally require careful planning and sometimes patient waiting. You'll discover that the composition guidelines will come into your mind when looking for images, and they will soon become second nature to you. Finally, don't be hesitant to experiment with different arrangements. The greatest method to figure out what works is to simply go out there and start shooting. Try out various viewpoints, framing choices, and viewpoint combinations until you discover one that feels right. With some practice, you'll be able to create stunning photos in no time!

Unlike painters, most photographs have little if any training in color theory. This is a pity, since unless one understands the physiological as well as psychological basis of formal color theory it's hard to understand why some photographs work and some don't, except on a "gut feel" basis.

A thorough search of the web has also come up short. Since most landscape, nature and wildlife photographers work in color it is important we understand the underpinnings of our art. This is not a simple topic. It intertwines the physics of light, the physiology of vision and our psychological perceptions.

The Color Spectrum

Discussions about color always begin with a color wheel (above) and a discussion of the Primary Colors. Depending on the application and environment Primary Colors fall into three families:

RGB(Red / Blue / Green)CMY(Cyan / Magenta / Yellow)YRB(Yellow / Red / Blue).

RGB is used by most electronic and transmissive-light technologies such as TV and film, and CMY (actually CMYK including Black) is used with reflected light technologies such as printing inks. The primaries traditionally taught in art school for painters, and for this reason the ones we'll be discussing here, are YRB (Yellow / Red / Blue). There's no point in arguing over which primary system is best — they each have their place in a specific discipline.

First and Second Order Colors

Any color of the spectrum can be made by mixing the Yellow, Red, and Blue primaries. This is why they are called First-Order colors. These are pure colors and are not created though mixing any other colors. If you look at the Color Spectrum you'll notice that while there are an infinity of additional colors, convention has it that there are in fact 9 additional Second-Order colors, for a total of 12 in the two groups combined. All other colors are considered Third-Order and won't be discussed here much.

These 12 colors, starting at the top of the color wheel with Blue and moving clockwise are; Blue-Violet, Violet, Red-Violet, Red, Red-Orange, Orange, Yellow-Orange, Yellow, Yellow-Green, Green and Blue-Green.

First Order Colors

Yellow — A First-Order Color

Aspens #1, Route 168, October 1999

Photographed with a Rollei 6008 Integral and 300mm Schneider APO Tele-Xenar on Provia 100F

While the Yellow of the Aspens in this photograph is a bit toward the Yellow-Orange end of the spectrum it will serve to illustrate this primary color. Yellow is the brightest color. It screams for our attention and this is why warning signs are frequently painted this color. Yellow and Yellow-Orange also are the dominant colors of Autumn and as such have a strong appeal to our emotions. Psychologically Yellow is a color denoting happiness.

Red — A First-Order Color

Snow Fence —Toronto, 1994

Taken with a Nikon F4 and 60mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor

Red is intense and is a universal warning color and is therefore hard to ignore. A little Red goes a long way.

Blue — A First-Order Color

Mirrored Lake —CA, 1996

Taken with a Mamiya 645 and 55mm f/2.8 lens on Provia 100.

The sky is Blue, and water is usually Blue, as it derives its color by reflecting the sky. Blue is the color which defines our planet. In fact from space Earth is seen as a Blue planet.

Blue is a retiring color and conveys a feeling of restfulness and passivity.

Second Order Colors

Orange — A Second-Order Color

Warm Turnout, October, 2000

Photographed with a Rollei 6008 Integral and 300mm Schneider APO Tele-Xenar on Provia 100F

Orange is a second-order color formed from the mixing of the Red and Yellow primaries. While the first-order primaries have limited range before one is outside their scope, a secondary such as Orange has a broader range of possible tonalities.

In this photograph, taken along the Blue Ridge Parkway just before sunset on a day in late Autumn, we have everything from the dark Red tree in the foreground to the Yellow one center-right, accentuating the Oranges which add so much warmth to this image. The bare trees scattered throughout the frame are essentially medium-Gray. Gray is the most neutral of all colors and through the effect of simultaneous-contrast (see below) appears complementary to any other color in the frame. In this case it tends to subdue the Oranges, which would otherwise appear over-the-top. Nevertheless, the colors are an accurate rendition of late-afternoon light illuminating this scene's fall foliage and ground-cover.

Green — A Second-Order Color

Evergreen Hillside, Quebec, 2000.

Photographed with a Canon EOS3 and 100~400mm f/5.6L IS lens on Provia F100 film.

Green is a second-order color formed from the mixing of Yellow and Blue. As with Orange it is capable of a wide range of tonalities or shades. Of course Green is the predominant color of vegetation and as such is dominant in many landscape photographs.

Violet — A Second-Order Color

Blue Ridge Sunrise, October, 2000.

Photographed with a Rollei 6008 Integral and 300mm Schneider Tele-Xenon lens on Provia 100F

Violet is a Second Order color formed by the mixing of Blue and Red. It is not a color which is readily found in nature, though of course the flower of that name is a notable exception. Violet is a color traditionally associated with nobility and it conveys a feeling of elegance and warmth.

Working with Color

Now for a look at our perceptions of the relationships between various colors. The following section discusses the concepts of Complementary Colors, Simultaneous Contrast, Complementary Ratios, and Harmonizing Colors.

Complementary Colors & Simultaneous Contrast

Two Bunch Carp — Desert Hot Springs, CA 1995

Taken with a Nikon F4 and 60mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor

Complementary colors are any two colors which lie opposite each other on the color wheel. Two such opposite colors can be regarded as being in balance when they appear together. In the picture above the Orange carp provides the pleasing complement needed to the Blue water. In fact, when complementary colors appear together they increase their intensity through a process called Simultaneous Contrast.

Photographed with a Canon EOS D30 and 100~400mm f/5.6L lens @ 400mm

Red / Green is one of the most common color contrasts. In this photograph, taken in the Pacific lowlands of Costa Rica, pale pinky/red of the out of focus bush in the center of the frame makes itself and the varying shades of green around it more intense by its presence. Cover it with your thumb to see how the intensity of the greens diminishes. Note as well that a small amount of a complementary color (here red) is needed to enhance its complement.

Complementary Ratios

There's a test that you can do for yourself in Photoshop or almost any graphics program. Create squares of complementary colors and compare their relative intensities. While Red and Green are roughly equal in their effect on each other, Orange and Blue need about a 3:1 ratio for the same balance. With Yellow and Violet it's about 5:1. (Your mileage may vary).

Harmonizing Colors

Russian Olive

Photographed with a Canon EOS D30 and 70~200 f/2.8L lens at ISO 100. RAW Mode.

Harmonizing colors are ones which can be found on the color circle by visualizing the three points of an isosceles triangle that sits in the middle of the circle. This places two of the three colors just one color zone apart with the third at the long end of the triangle opposite.

People with a good color sense instinctively choose colors which are harmonious when decorating their home. Photographers, unless they are working in a studio, rarely have the ability to select their palette. But it is helpful to understand when you do encounter a color combination that is harmonious, such as the one in the photograph above, why this is so.

In this photograph the key color is the Blue-Green of the Russian Olive leaves. The harmonizing colors are the Orange and Red found in the rock face. The thing to note about Harmonizing Colors is that if mixed together they would produce Gray.

Intensity

The intensity of a light source also affects our color perception. At low light levels, blue and green objects appear brighter than red ones when compared to their relative brightness in stronger light. This effect is known as the Purkine Shift. When the light becomes brighter, there is another in hues, called the Bezold-Brucke effect. This causes most colors to appear less red or green and more blue or yellow as the intensity of the light source increases.

Half Dome and Tree (Rollei), 1999

Half Dome and Tree - (XPan), 1999

Conclusion

If you've gotten this far, congratulations! Color theory is a complex subject. It contains objective laws of psycho-optics as well as subjective value judgments. This page is just a quick overview of a large and complex topic. Each of these small sections is at least a chapter in text books on the subject so we've only been able to cover selected highlights. Color theory is usually taught to student painters in the first-year of art school. It makes sense for them to learn it because painters create their color environments, while photographers for the most part find them. Nevertheless, photographers are well served understanding the basics so that they can appreciate why some color images "work" and others don't. Taste after all does have its roots in objective reality.

Shape

Whether you're a professional photographer or simply enjoy taking pictures as a hobby, understanding the various shapes in photography can help you create more interesting and eye-catching compositions. The three main shapes in photography are squares, rectangles, and circles. Each shape has its own unique set of characteristics that can be used to create different effects. Squares are perhaps the most versatile of all the shapes in photography. They can be used to frame a subject, emphasize symmetry, or create a sense of stability. Rectangles, on the other hand, tend to be more dynamic, making them ideal for showing movement or creating a sense of depth. Circles are often used to add intrigue or give an image a dreamlike quality.

Experiment with all three shapes to see which ones work best for the type of photos you want to take. You may be surprised at how such simple shapes can have such a big impact on your images. Shape is a two-dimensional element basic to picture composition and is usually the first means by which a viewer identifies an object within the picture. Form is the three-dimensional equivalent of shape. Even though the shape is only two-dimensional, with the proper application of lighting and tonal range, you can bring out form and give your subjects a three-dimensional quality. Lighting can also subdue or even destroy form by causing dark shadows that may cause several shapes to merge into one.

Shapes can be made more dominant by placing them against plain contrasting backgrounds; for example, consider again the white sail against the dark water background. The greatest emphasis of shape is achieved when the shape is silhouetted (fig. 5-11), thus eliminating other qualities of the shape, such as texture and roundness, or the illusion of the third dimension.

However, shadows can also be problematic, resulting in underexposed areas or unwanted glare. When taking photographs in bright sunlight, it is important to be aware of the direction of the light and the position of the sun relative to your subject. This will help you to avoid creating shadows that obscure important details. If possible, try to take advantage of natural shade by positioning your subject in a way that minimizes the number of shadows cast. If you must use artificial light, be sure to position the light source in such a way that it does not create strong, harsh shadows. By careful planning and experimentation, you can learn to use shadows to your advantage, creating photos that are both striking and well-exposed.

Lines

Lines can be effective elements of composition, because they give structure to your photographs. Lines can unify composition by directing the viewer's eyes and attention to the main point of the picture or lead the eyes from one part of the picture to another. They can lead the eyes to infinity, divide the picture, and create patterns. Through linear perspective, lines can lend a sense of depth to a photograph. (Linear perspective causes receding parallel lines to appear to converge in the picture. This allows you to create an illusion of depth in your pictures.)

The viewer's eyes tend to follow lines into the picture (or out of the picture) regardless of whether they are simple linear elements such as fences, roads, and a row of phone poles, or more complex line elements, such as curves, shapes, tones, and colors. Lines that lead the eye or direct attention are referred to as leading lines. A good leading line is one that starts near the bottom corner of the scene and continues unbroken until it reaches the point of interest (fig. 5-12). It should end at this point; otherwise, attention is carried beyond the primary subject of the photograph. The apparent direction of lines can often be changed by simply changing viewpoint or camera angle.

Vertical, diagonal, horizontal, and curved lines create different moods. Vertical lines communicate a sense of strength, rigidity, power, and solidarity to the viewer. On the other hand, horizontal lines represent peace, tranquility, and quietness. A generally accepted practice is to use a vertical format for pictures having predominantly vertical lines and horizontal format for pictures having predominantly horizontal lines. Again, this is a generally accepted practice, NOT a rule.

Diagonal lines represent movement, action, and speed. A picture with diagonal lines conveys a feeling of dynamic action even when the subject is static (fig. 5-13). Curved lines present a sense of grace, smoothness, and dignity to a photograph (fig. 5-14). The most common curved line is the S curve. As with any compositional tool, it is important to use lines thoughtfully and sparingly in order to create photos that are pleasing to the eye.

Lines are not only present in the shape of things but can be created by arranging several elements within the picture area so they form lines by their relationship with one another.

Lines are a fundamental element of photography, providing shape and structure to an image to create a sense of depth and perspective. Lines can also be used to create a feeling of movement, or to convey a sense of stillness and calm, and help to define boundaries and space within an image. By carefully considering the placement of lines in an image, photographers can create powerful and evocative compositions. However, be aware, if not used carefully, they can appear harsh and abrupt, leading the eye out of the frame. In addition, using too many lines in an image can be visually confusing and even dizzying. When composing an image with lines, pay attention to the direction of the lines and how they interact with other elements in the scene. By doing so, you can create images with a sense of harmony and balance.

This article consists of a number of KAP and landscape images illustrating various photographic points. They are not there to be blindly followed, in fact breaking them can make a picture. However over the years you will find that understanding the rules, helps get a better picture. The idea is to get to the stage where you do some of these things instinctively, and that's when you start to move away from the rules and become creative!

Why bother?

KAP isn't easy, as well as all the normal photographic considerations, you need a rig, a kite, the right wind, a kite launch site, and a greater consideration for the safety of others - why bother?The low altitude photography can give a unique perspective on the world. In order to demonstrate this consider the following four images of Warkworth Castle in Northumberland:

From the Car Park, Warkworth Castle (English Heritage) maintains a formidable entrance across the dry-moat.

This is the wide-angled view that every visitor gets of the castle from the south, with a limited view of what may lie inside.

James Gentles, 2003

From the kite, some of the castle's secrets are revealed. The moat and walls still guard the interior, but the layout of the various buildings within becomes more obvious.

Strong oblique sunshine accentuates the ramparts, and the earth mound the castle sits on. This makes the castle stand-out from the foreground.

James Gentles, 2003

From an airplane a further dimension is seen, with the castle's prominent defensive position on a loop on the River Coquet. In addition the village of Warkworth can now be seen nestling behind, and filling the loop in the river.

Finally this shot has a different appeal, more of a living map than a photograph.

The strategic position of the castle is demonstrated, however much of the impact of its dramatic location is lost as all relief disappears due to the height of the camera above ground.

Additionally, unwanted elements in the picture (like the two bridges above the town) become a distraction.

KAP - aerial and satellite images can all play to their strengths, depending on the subject matter. Each one has its own technical difficulties, however there are rewards for those who overcome them. Another important lesson is that you don't need 1000' of line to take a good picture, but since KAP fills the low-altitude aerial photography niche, you should stick to below 500' (local legal restrictions permitting), and play to your strengths! There is however no excuse for poor photographs, so both a technical and artistic challenge requires to be overcome.

Places and Patience

You may have started KAP with a view to taking particular pictures, however they have to meet photogenic as well as practical rules.

What looks good from the air is something you have to learn, sometimes the simplest objects can look stunning, and stunning objects can look boring. Look at other people's galleries and translate them into ideas in your locality. One combination that works is the mix of impossible angle, simple subject, and strong color, yes the roof really is that shade of green! You will spend several hours on a shoot, so pick your subjects carefully!

This is when the practicalities get in the way. Reconnoiter the site beforehand. Where will you launch the kite? What wind directions are favorable? Are there cables or power lines ANYWHERE nearby? What is the best kite to use for high angle or long reach? Be patient! Wait for the right wind and weather, even the right time of day for sun angles, before returning for the shoot.

Frame and Line

There are a number of basic rules about the framing of a picture. Most basic is the Golden Ratio (1:1.618), which is supposed to be the most pleasing to view. Generally landscape format is considered more soothing and portrait more tense. The Rule of Thirds highlights where areas of interest or lines should be. Interest should lie on these lines, or be centered around the 4 intersections, or hot-spots. It is considered good practice to have the horizon, for example, on one of these lines.

Also in the picture shown is the Golden Spiral. Rather than the static thirds this spiral traces out a dynamic path for the eye to move through the picture, finishing on one of the hot-spots. Does your eye get led into the picture along the spiral? In this case the line between the sand and dunes forms the line, but more conventionally it could be a road, track, fence or wall.

For images with less strong horizontal and verticals you could try fitting the image to the blue lines on the right. Note the right angle of the two blue lines, and how it is close to a hot-spot on the Rule of Thirds which is also included on the diagram. Remember these templates can be mirrored and inverted to suit your image. Also the lines could be any feature on the image, or indeed they could be features from the foreground and background that happen to be in line.

Consider this final image, look at the red cross shown, formed by the mountains and cairn.

The general principle here is that there is a pleasure in order and symmetry, even if this symmetry is made up of logically unconnected parts of the picture. They do however help lead you between the different parts of the picture. You can take this even further and try to echo the shape in the foreground (the cairn), with the shape in the background (the mountain in the top left hot-spot) which is highlighted in green. With KAP there is less of a concept of foreground and background, however the concept of echoing shapes from different parts of the image still applies.

Sun, Shade and Impossible Angles

The sun is the KAPers best friend, it accentuates height through casting shadows, and offering shading on vertical surfaces. The two shots shown have not been changed in any "photo package". They were taken less than 60 seconds apart. Try to ignore the better framing of the "sunny" shot, and note its improved contrast and the 3D property that the strong winter shadow gives it. Try to keep the whole shadow in the frame, and if possible use the morning or evening light for long shadows and richer colors as shown here. Don't be frightened to shoot with the sun at 90o to the camera. With the more interesting angles directly into the sun it's difficult to control exposure. The use of gray graduated and polarizing filters is even more unobtainable, c'est la vie.

Make the most of what KAP does best - occupy the space between conventional photography and high altitude aerial photography. The image on the right was taken perilously close to the tower, hence the perspective. A huge flag set against the slender shadow, which is slightly exaggerated by the ground falling away to the left - it's a pity the shadow of the top of the tower wasn't in shot. It is a general photography rule that you shouldn't cut shadows off the edge of the frame, but it's sometimes difficult to achieve.

Take advantage of the incomprehensible human ability to recognise objects from above, and toy with the viewer. Note that horizontal close-ups of this tower don't work on their own, they could just be part of a bigger castle's ramparts. Show enough of a building to set it in context and set the camera's position in an unattainable space. If however you are working on a montage, then these shots can be used once the viewer has had the context set by other shots.

Whilst talking about angles, a word about the horizon. Keeping it flat is difficult, but this can make all the difference. Although the horizon can be re-set in the computer, gross errors result in severe loss as the picture is cropped back to square. With the horizon in shot, try not to break it with an occasional tree or building unless they are on the horizon. Even images without the horizon visible there are no excuses, try to keep verticals vertical, unless the content of the picture is abstract and there is no natural sense of "up", e.g. the image is looking straight down.

Neat and Tidy

As well as trying not to cut shadows off at the edge of the shot, try not to have intrusions into the frame either. Keep the edges plain and simple, keep the areas of interest within the frame. In the example here the dry stone wall and gate bottom right is an unwelcome addition to the shot.  Paths and roads can be used to lead you into the picture, but here the gate is a distraction. Although turning the image by 180o would help the Tower shot on the left, the shadow is missing and in the original high resolution image you can see various KAP paraphernalia sitting on a brown bench to the left of the steps. Try to keep the shot tidy so don't leave things lying around! I didn't keep this image after the shoot.

This leads us on to the question of whether the photographer should be in the picture, and what to do with the kite line if it's in shot. I have noted that whilst the photographer's shadow in shot is normally considered unforgivable, KAPers have a different attitude to having either the photographer / kite flier, or kite line in shot. Do these things add to the image or not? The photographer / kite flier being in shot isn't an issue if they add some interest or scale, normally they are far enough away to just look like another person.

Being in frame. Does it distract from the picture, or destroy the illusion of the shot? In these cases one could electronically remove it. However if it adds to the image, or the game of "How did they do that?" then leave it in! So get out there and get flying, have some fun, make memorable pictures, and remember the golden rule: The difference between a good and bad photographer is that the good photographer doesn't show you his bad pictures!

The following picture (large aperture) isolates a small zone around the focus plane.

The next picture (same focus plane) was shot with minimal aperture to achieve max. depth-of-field.

The next shot (large aperture) isolates the foreground ...

... whereas this one prefers a different focus plane (same aperture).

As you can see we have lots of potential creativity just by selecting the aperture and focus plane.

Focal-Length and Perspective

There's a bit more about the focal length than just the coverage of a certain angle of view - there's always a distinct effect on the relationship between the objects within a scene.

Let's have a look at a relatively wide focal length first: 28mm. The following image samples show 4 trees with an equal distance between neighbor trees. At the wide setting it seems that this distance actually increases dramatically towards the foreground (exponential behavior of the distance). In other words: the tree to the left seems to be totally separated from the rest of the gang. The background seems to be far in the distance.

The next picture has a more natural view at about 50mm. The perspective is obviously much less extreme. Due to our real life experience we can guess that the distance between the trees is roughly the same though the separation is still visible (d^2 behavior).

Now we have a 100mm lens. The trees seem to group here with a seemingly small distance between the trees. Compared to the previous sample the now enlarged background suddenly moved towards the main object. The scene is compressed now.

At 200mm the effect increases even more. The group of trees seems to be virtually on the same distance plane. The background may be blurry (due to the small depth-of-field) but it seems to be just a few meters away. We speak of a "flat" perspective in this case.

Object Isolation

An object can be separated from its environment by various methods. For example, you can use a very wide lens to sort the scene into distinctive layers. However, while you separate the object the environment is still visible which may be disturbing because -say- the background is very ugly. Sometimes there's a workaround for this problem: we choose a very small depth-of-field so only the main subject is in focus while everything in front or behind the focus plane gets blurry and therefore virtually unimportant. Have a look at the 1st sample below. The blue marble to the right sucks the view from the first look. This is a natural reaction because the brain scans for the most contrasty subject first. The isolation of the object due to its "outstanding" sharpness is very significant here.

by Michael Wagner

Wanna see a perverse example. Imagine being in the Himalayas at a nice sunset and all you shoot is a beautiful rose. The result is not all too bad I think!

A small DOF is also a common technique for portrait photography. Usually it is quite difficult to find the right balance between people that are chosen to be the main subject, and their environment. A sharp background is often distracting here so a large aperture should be used to focus the attention on the point of interest.

by Randhir Amoganathan

Separation

A small depth-of-field can separate a subject quite easily from the surrounding but sometimes this is no option because we either operate at very long focus distances or we simply want to include a sharp focused environment in the scene. Nonetheless we often still have the option to stress the importance of a certain object.In the first picture we wouldn't gain anything by choosing a large aperture because the fore- and background doesn't contain any disturbing objects. The bath-tubs are naturally isolated by the difference in brightness and the interruption of the uniform environment. A similar scene is e.g. a boat on the wide open sea.

by Horst Schneider

The scene itself may be quite dramatic and in the first moments your attention may be drawn to the impressive mountains in the background. However sooner or later your view will get focused on the fisherman in the middle of the river because the contrast difference between him and his surroundings is the highest in the otherwise low contrast environment.

by Horst Schneider

Compression

A major problem with many presentations is an overwhelming usage of wide-angle lenses. Monotonous perspectives are poison so just add some dynamic here and go for a medium tele lens. This may be an usual thought but once you get used to the idea that typical portrait lenses like a 85mm or 135mm are good for more, much more. In contrast to the depth provided by a wide-angle lens it'll compress a scene or isolate or special object.The first picture illustrates how a tele lens can compress the several layers of the scene to a relatively flat perspective with a seemingly small distance between the layers.

The next picture shows that this also works pretty good for landscape shots as well.

Layers

Very often you've a major landscape feature like a spectacular mountain which will degenerate to just another rock in a picture. After the first look the viewer has already sucked all the information of the scene so there's not much left than the raving comments of the photographer.Have a look at 1st picture below. The volcano in the background is still the dominating feature of the landscape but there's more. We've two additional layers - the foreground and the center - both not too impressive but it adds a certain kick to the scene. It is quite the same with the 2nd picture to the right. None of the objects is very special and probably not worth a picture. However, the layered scene as a whole is quite beautiful with the fuzzy mountains at the horizon, the rocks in the blue sea and the foreground with its fine structures.

by Horst Schneider

The two pictures below show the effect of a single additional layer. The left picture may show an impressive mountain but nonetheless it looks a bit empty - the right picture looks more interesting.

What Is Composition?

Composition is simply defined as the organization of space. Just as musicians compose symphonies and interior designers arrange furnishings to please the senses, photographers compose pictures so that all of the visual elements of the image relate to each other in a harmonious fashion. In portraiture it is the photographer's responsibility to organize the visual elements of the image such that the primary subject (normally the face) is the most dominant and visible feature. In a group photograph skill is required to ensure that equal emphasis is placed on each subject so that one individual does not dominate the portrait.

Sometimes a secondary point of interest (a prop, tool, toy, etc.) is an important element of the composition. These elements should be placed in a manner that relates it to the primary subject, but be subordinate to it. Primary and secondary elements of composition are arranged so that their relationship is naturally pleasing to the eye. Subject placement should not be arbitrarily made, but instead made so that its location relative to the sides and vertices of the frame provides a natural and pleasant means of viewing it. Determining that placement is based on a proportion that is inherent in nature itself, and one that would be universally recognized by any intelligent culture.

The ancient Greek civilization studied shapes, patterns, and proportions that existed in the natural world around them and found that, from among them all, that the Golden Proportion was the most simple, beautiful, and perplexing of all. Found naturally in plant and animal form it led the Greeks to theorize that the same natural beauty existent in nature should be utilized in man made creations (art, architecture, music, etc.) if they, too, were to be thought of as beautiful.

Rule Of Thirds

The Rule of Thirds is simply a generalization of the techniques used to locate saddle points within the photograph. Imagine dividing the interior of the camera's viewfinder into a Tic-Tac-Toe grid. The four points of intersection within the grid, called "saddle points", indicate the best possibilities for subject placement that produces the most interesting and dynamic composition. It pleases us as viewers in an abstract sense because it forces us to recognize the "Golden Proportion" within the framework of the rectangle.

In fact there are 4 such "saddle points" available within the rectangle. Either one of these may be utilized as the location of the primary subject. Any secondary elements of the image should be placed at another saddle point or on a diagonal line that exists between saddle points. Before you take the shot, consider how you want to divide your picture area into three sections both horizontally and vertically. The intersections of these imagined lines suggest four options for placing the focal point in a good composition. The option you pick is determined by the subject and how you wish to display it.

Subject In The Center

The center of interest in an image is not in the center because placement of the subject there forces our eye to view it in an unnatural and uncomfortable manner. Note in the following illustration how the Golden Proportion is not utilized when the subject is in the center. The triangles formed within the rectangle are disproportionate to one another.

The center is generally not the best place to put the subject because it can make the image feel static and uninteresting. The eye naturally wants to explore the rest of the image, but when the subject is in the center, it can be difficult for the eye to know where to go. If you're just starting out in photography, or if you're trying to break out of your comfort zone, it can be helpful to purposely put the subject in the center of the frame and see how it feels. Once you've done that a few times, you'll start to get a feel for what works and what doesn't.

The most common and pleasing way to place the subject is off-center, using one of the "saddle points" as a guide. This creates a more dynamic composition and allows the eye to wander around the rest of the image. When placing the subject off-center, it's important to make sure that there's enough space in the frame so that the subject doesn't feel cramped. You don't want to put the subject so close to the edge that it feels like it's about to fall out of the frame.

The same rules of composition apply to rectangles other than the golden rectangle. Even though 5x7 and 8x10 photographs are disproportionate to each other the viewer's eye can be pleased if the subject is placed so that the interior of the image is divided into similar triangles. Look at the 5x7 and 8x10 representations, as well as the 11x14, that follow and notice how saddle points are determined in the same fashion.

It's a simple process that clearly indicates how to make proper subject placement. By thinking abstractly and drawing logical conclusions we are now able to relate this information to practical composition in portraiture. Each of the portraits that follow has a single individual as the subject. Notice that, whether vertical or horizontal, each image is composed so that the subject placement coincides with a saddle point.

This results in a pleasing and dynamic composition.

When to break rules? Once you understand the Rules of Thirds, you may find that you want to break them from time to time. That's perfectly fine! The most important thing is that you understand why the rules exist in the first place, so that you can make a conscious decision to break them when it suits your needs.

Horizontal or Vertical

Which way should I turn the camera? This is a common question. Many amateurs rarely, if ever, turn the camera in order to compose a shot in a vertical format. Why? The answer may be simply because they are used to seeing the world through a horizontal format. Or maybe it is because they have not yet realized that one key point of composition is to match the shape of the frame to the shape of the subject. Or perhaps it's because they just haven't ever done it that way before. Perhaps after reading this article they will be inspired to flip their cameras a time or two to get some great shots they may have otherwise been missing.

Choosing which format to use is a very important part of composition. Try it both ways. View the scene in both formats, see which one looks better. But more importantly, there are several guidelines to keep in mind when deciding which format to use. Below are several guidelines to follow and the when and why's of using each one. Study the examples and try to apply the guidelines to your own work. The frame shape should always match the shape of the subject. For instance, if shooting a skyline scene, the only choice is horizontal.

Why? Because a skyline is horizontal, it follows the horizon. On the other hand, if the subject is a skyscraper, the choice would be vertical. Why? Because skyscrapers are vertical buildings. The shape of the frame isolates the subject. Compositions should not look like a round peg shoved into a square hole. The frame should compliment, not distract from, the total composition. Should this rule of thumb ever be broken? Of course, but only if you have a very good reason for doing so and only if the frame choice adds to the theme.

Take a look at the three images of the roses. In the first photo, the photographer has chosen to place a rose dead center of the frame. Why? There seems to be no valid reason for this placement and two-thirds of the space is wasted. The subject is a single rose. Flowers with long stems are naturally vertical in shape. Then why place it into a horizontal frame? Why place it dead center?

Look at the second image of the same flower. The change is in the format, here the flower itself is the subject and the viewers know it immediately because the wasted space is gone. Now look at the last image of the roses. This composition works? Why? Because here the subject is not a single rose, but rather a group of roses in a horizontal arrangement. The repetition is carried out through all three thirds of the image. The repetition is the subject or theme, not the single rose. A single rose is vertical whereas a bed of roses is horizontal. The choice of format emphasizes the subject and reinforces the theme.

Choosing the format also depends on the viewpoint from which you shoot the subject. The background is the first, most obvious difference between one viewpoint and another. If you're capturing a thing that can't be moved due to practicality or space restrictions, the only way to change what's behind, is to select a new vantage point.

Tip: Using a wide-angle lens to capture more of the surrounding environment around the subject might also aid in framing the picture. This may be utilized to offer depth and size, or simply to add interest to the background. Wide-angle lenses can also make the main subject appear smaller than they are, which can be used on its own or in conjunction with other elements. But let's back again to format examples.

Look at the three photos below. Because of the placement of the bird in the frame as well as the format, each one tells a different story. In the first one, the bird itself is the subject. The frame matches the shape of the bird. In the second photo, there seems to be no direct relationship to the shape of the bird and the photographer's choice of frame shape. The poor bird seems squished into the frame. The only relative theme here may be to show the bird's habitat. In that case, the bird is not the subject, the habitat is the subject. In the third image, the bird is again the subject but the theme has changed. Is the bird ready to fly away? Has it sensed the photographer's presence? We don't know, but because of the placement in the frame we can assume that the photographer used a horizontal format and left one-third of the frame blank for a very good reason.

Pros and Cons

Horizontal Format

PROS

-Shows  more of the scene in one frame

-Good for wide shots

-Works well for landscapes and other nature shots

CONS

-Can make subjects look small or unimportant

-Not as good for close ups or portraits

Vertical Format

PROS

- Makes subjects look taller/ more important

- Good for close ups and portraits

- Creates a sense of depth

CONS

- Can be hard to fill the frame without cutting off part of the subject

- Not as good for wide shots

Learn to use frame shape as important tool in composition. Look for examples in magazines and try to understand when and why to use different views. If you notice, magazines favor the vertical format. Why? Because it cuts down on wasted space. Most often, only true landscapes will be used in the horizontal format. Is that always the case? No, but it is the most common.

It is important to pay attention to the shape of the actual subject when choosing the frame shape. Not only will your shots look better, they will start to look more professional.

In the previous part, we introduced a method for analyzing a scene and discussed the importance of preparation and planning. In this part, we will take things a step further and discuss the transition from an inventory of elements and their attributes to a successful composition. This article is a bit more technical in nature, but is not necessarily geared towards either experienced or novice photographers. The discussion, for the most part, applies primarily to artistic image making and may have little bearing on other types of photography, mainly ones which are documentary in nature.

What Makes A Successful Composition?

Reality offers us such wealth that we must cut some of it out on the spot, simplify. The question is do we always cut out what we should? While we're working, we must be conscious of what we're doing. Sometimes we have the feeling that we've taken a great photo, and yet we continue to unfold. We must avoid however, snapping away, shooting quickly and without thought, overloading ourselves with unnecessary images that clutter our memory and diminish the clarity of the whole. - Henri Cartier-Bresson

Let us begin by studying the concept of a composition. A composition is the artist's interpretation of a scene - the things they find interesting and inspiring and wish to convey to the viewer. A composition is a whole - it is the coming together of elements carefully arranged to elicit a response in the viewer. Therefore, the first criterion for judging a successful composition is whether or not the artist's message was indeed conveyed and resulted in an emotional reaction. Further success will be determined by whether that reaction was indeed the intended one.

A photograph, regardless of size, format, equipment, or technique used in its production, takes part of a scene and separates it from a larger context. From that point on, the image becomes a whole, self-contained composition. When this composition gains in impact from being separated from its original context, it is successful. If it loses impact - it is unsuccessful. Thus the next criterion for a successful composition is in its ability to stand on its own as a whole when taken out of its original context. A successful composition needs no explanation of the context from which it was removed.

Next is simplicity. As Ansel Adams noted - a photograph is usually looked at, seldom looked into. Once the most interesting elements have been identified, one should consider their arrangement within the composition. The composition needs to be simple enough for a viewer to immediately recognize what it is the photographer intended them to see and experience. Note that simplicity in composition does not necessarily imply fewer elements, but rather fewer distractions. For example: an image may contain a subject backed by a vast forest consisting of hundreds of trees. As long as the trees' pattern remains uniform they will not distract from the main subject. Elements in a composition should enhance each other or, at the very least, not interfere with each other. They must never distract from each other.

An extension of simplicity is the point of gravity. In compositions with a large number of elements of diverse characteristics, the viewer should not have to search through the elements in an image, but rather be drawn, led by elements and their attributes (lines, curves, color, tone, etc.) to a point or points in the composition that have the most impact. The successful photographer will recognize potential gravity points within a scene and use them to enhance his/her composition's impact.

Guidelines, Rules and Technique

There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs. - Ansel Adams

Over the ages there have been many attempts to find a common denominator for aesthetics. From the Golden Ratio to Feng Shui; from prime numbers to Fibonacci sequences, there are no hard and fast rules to achieving a successful image. There are, however, guidelines and techniques that may improve your odds - principles to assist in deciding a good composition based on a wide array of samples and the experience of image makers over many years.

One of the most widely used guidelines is the Rule of Thirds. According to the Rule of Thirds, elements placed at (or very close to) the intersection points of an imaginary 3x3 grid dividing the frame, will be more powerful and work better as gravity points.

Another oft-used technique is the use of Leading Lines - identify lines in the scene pointing towards an interesting subject. These lines are often more powerful when they are diagonal - adding depth to the image. A common practice is to have these lines intersect with the image's edge, preferably a corner, making them immediately noticeable.

The image above has proven very successful for me. Note how the placement of the sunburst coincides with the Rule of Thirds, and the diagonal lines strongly leading towards it. Without these lines, the many trees at the top could easily clutter the composition and distract the viewer.

Separating the composition from its context is perhaps the most difficult skill to master. Our eyes see the world at a fixed angle, and what initially draws us to a given scene is the impression conveyed through normal vision. In many cases, wider or tighter compositions may evade us simply because we are not used to visualizing them. In time, experienced photographers learn to recognize scenes as they will appear in the viewfinder or on the ground glass, but even then, some subtle compositions may be overlooked. As was mentioned previously, a common aid is a template - a hollow rectangle preserving the frame ratio of your camera.

For 35mm an empty slide mount will do the trick. For larger formats a simple cardboard cut-out can prove a valuable accessory. Studying a scene through this template, holding it at varying distances from your eye, rotating it, etc. can be extremely helpful in determining the most powerful elements and how they co-exist in a composition, independent of their surroundings. This is especially useful when unpacking and setting a camera is a lengthy process.

Examine the image on the left. This image was taken at the Painted Hills area of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in Oregon. The area consists of several hills of very vivid color and interesting texture. The surrounding area is mostly filled with trails, high-desert vegetation and some farmland. Obviously what attracts an eye are the unique color, texture and lines in the hills. The resulting image was taken with a short telephoto lens at close range to properly capture the texture as well as isolate the interesting elements from their larger context, plagued with a variety of distractions.

Equipment Notes

Concentrate on equipment and you'll take technically good photographs. Concentrate on seeing the light's magic colors and your images will stir the soul. - Jack Dykinga.

The process of finding the perfect gear is a long and educational journey; expensive at some points, disappointing at others, frustrating at many, and rewarding at most. Your gear should be an extension of you - the controls should readily avail themselves to you where you expect them to be and the image making process should make logical sense to you. Do not feel compelled to opt for the longest list of features, highest numbers, or most popular brand. Before considering the minute details, first judge equipment by how it feels - from the placement and feel of controls to the effect its texture, weight, and size have on your fingertips.

Some will tell you to get a better lens rather than a more expensive camera. This is a good rule of thumb, but one with many exceptions. If a camera doesn't feel right in your hands, if its user interface is awkward, if in any way it does not work for you - it will become a source of frustration, a distraction. It will prevent you from applying your full attention to the image you are attempting to create. Experiment, experiment, then experiment some more. Efficient use of some types of equipment requires some learning and practice. Allow yourself the time to be familiar with different types of gear before settling on the one to own.

The Artist

To convey in the print the feeling you experienced when you exposed your film - to walk out of the darkroom and say: "This is it, the equivalent of what I saw and felt! That's what it's all about. -John Sexton

SextonBy now you may be asking yourself if all there is to an artistic image is following rules and being proficient with your photographic gear. The answer is a resounding "NO." Beyond any guideline or rule, beyond any subject or equipment or light or technique, by far the most important role in the making of a successful image is that of the artist - the photographer. Understanding your subject matter - the scene, your raw materials - elements and attributes, your tools - the camera, lenses, filters, film, basic rules of optics and exposure, etc. is only a first step. Do not allow yourself to be consumed by these - they are merely means, not the goal. The goal is to leverage your skill, knowledge, and inspiration to create a harmonious, synergetic, emotional image.

You may now be asking yourself how best to introduce your own vision into a natural scene, to interject your own interpretation, to develop your own style, to produce new concepts and interpretations given all the guidelines and rules and constraints. Herein lies the black magic of art - this is the one thing that cannot be learned or taught other than by yourself, to yourself. Inspiration comes from a heightened state of emotion. Help yourself find your inspiration, be it through music or silence, through poetry or images, through interaction or solitude, and once you find it - learn to avoid cynicism without resorting to cliche, to apply guidelines and rules without becoming an automaton. From here on - you are on your own. Go out, seek beauty, create art.

Balancing Your Painting

You should have a strong center of interest, or focal point. This is the element to which all other elements will direct the viewer. You may have secondary elements, but attempt to have just one center of interest. Use the other features in your painting, sky, trees, and flowers, to lead and keep the viewer coming back to the focal point. Doing this will also create a sense of depth and space in your painting.

Technically, there are two kinds of balance in a composition. Symmetrical balance (also referred to as "formal"), and asymmetrical balance (also called "informal balance"). Symmetrical balance produces paintings that are restful, calming, and visually stable. Asymmetrical balance is characterized by arranging related or unrelated objects of differing visual weights counterbalancing one another. This can heighten interest, bring informality, or even produce tension in a painting. While both are ways correct, yet each offers different advantages and purposes.

If you're creating landscapes or immobile things, you'll need to arrange the scene and select where to put the focal point(s) in your image. There are several compositional guidelines available to assist you. These regulations will aid you in creating appealing photographs, but you may frequently encounter a fantastic picture that disregards them entirely. Once you've learned the rules, break them as often as desired, but at least be aware that you're breaking them and why.

How to Compose

Using a viewfinder

Once you've selected your subject, how do you compose your painting? There are several approaches. One simple way is to use a viewfinder. An empty 35mm slide holder will do nicely, or simply cut two right angle corners, or a fixed rectangle out of a piece of cardboard. If you have a prepared size canvas, board, or paper, first look through the viewfinder to capture the proportion of your painting surface. Then look through the viewfinder with one eye while squinting with the other, to view the scene you wish to paint.

Move the viewfinder toward and away from your eye, fine-tuning the composition by deciding whether you prefer an symmetrical or asymmetrical, vertical or horizontal composition, and so on. Don't be limited by the shape of the viewfinder (unless the surface you are using is a fixed shape.) Physically move around until you see exactly what you want, then set up your equipment.

Rule of Thirds

Another guide in composing is the "rule of thirds". Used more in photography than in art, the concept still applies. This shot is popular among landscape photographers, yet it works well for a wide range of subjects. The rule of thirds simply advises that you place the main focus of interest at an intersection of the thirds rather than in the center of the frame, which becomes a little tedious. That is to say one third up and one third in or two thirds up and one third in etc. Simply put, look for naturally occurring divisions of thirds in a scene. Try to avoid splitting your painting top to bottom, or side to side in half. It is more interesting to have a low or high horizon for instance, with one third at the top, two thirds at the bottom (or visa-versa) than splitting a painting right down the middle. Of course, many more variations are possible.

The Law of the Golden Section

A classic mathematical formula for distributing weight in a painting. Portrait painters since the Renaissance have adopted the use of this formula which is also applicable to any other subject as well. Golden Ratio affects the ratio (1:1.618) of a picture size, as well as the placement of the main subjects in the photo. This ratio is close to the 35mm ratio, so you don't need to change the size of the photo in most cases. But you need to consider the composition: the main subject should lie on one of the four lines or four intersections. The law established by the ancient architect Vitruvius, states: "For a space divided into equal parts to be agreeable and aesthetic, between the smallest and largest parts there must be the same relationship as between this larger part and the whole space."

The Key

The idea is to become familiar with the principles above as a guide in training your eyes to naturally create interesting and powerful compositions. In so doing, work to simplify, reducing all elements in the painting to only the information you need to express your subject or idea. In time, the very deliberate process of developing a composition will give way to a more natural, intuitive, interesting, and automatic activity, resulting in more original arrangements. You will also be better able to control your visual statement by expressing what you wish.

Composition Design Checklist

Here are just a few things to keep in mind and check while composing:

• balance, of elements & color
• proper rendering of light using value
• center of interest
• perspective
• space division
• harmony
• movement
• rhythm
• texture
• direction of line(s)
• positive/negative shapes
• balance of patterns
• contrast
• creativity
• overall design quality & visual strength

Tip: To check your composition while painting, view through a mirror turning your back toward the scene & easel. Shift your eyes back & forth between the painting and scene. Check for skewed elements, alignment, color, etc. Turn back to the painting to make your changes.

Ask most people who, in their opinion, is the greatest nature photographer in history and most will name Ansel Adams. Adams did not photograph wildlife, and very few of his images can be considered "macro". He never took a camera underwater or sat in a hide. He did not, in fact, practice most types of photography we associate with nature. Why then has his work made such a profound impression?

Adams' greatness comes not from images relying on technique or subject, but rather on vision, on being able to portray a scene, to arrange its elements, and to present it in a way that evokes an emotional response and allows the viewer to experience not only a beautiful place, but also the awe-inspiring grandeur of Nature. To achieve such an effect, it is not enough to have an interesting subject, or to maintain sharp focus, or to calculate the perfect exposure - one must also be able to see a composition within a scene, to visualize it, as it would appear in the final print. One must be able to convey his or her own inspiration to the viewer. That is the essence of landscape photography - learning to see, training the eye to recognize elements in a scene that can combine to produce an emotional reaction, and then capturing your own vision in a photograph. In this article we will focus on seeing and visualizing, rather than technique and gear.

Elements and Attributes - the Anatomy of a Scene

The more you look around at things, the more you see. The more you photograph, the more you realize what can be photographed and what can't be photographed. - Eliot Porter

Elements are all the things that make up a scene. Elements can be objects, lines, people, and wildlife. Learning to see these elements is the first step to creating a good landscape image. Once you make a mental inventory of elements available to you, your next step will be to arrange them - to find a composition in which they come together, enhancing or contrasting each other, complementing each other to create the desired effect. Attributes are qualities of each element that will affect the element's prominence in the image. Let us examine some of these attributes:

• Shape - every element in the scene has a distinct shape, which can be simple or irregular. Unusual shapes have a way of attracting attention away from simpler ones. This needs to be taken into account depending on which objects you want the viewer to be drawn to. Some shapes complement each other, while some are a distraction.
• Size - an element's size will determine its prominence in the frame. Depending on whether you wish the viewer to pay more or less attention to the object, you may want to select your lens and point of view to enhance or mitigate the effect of an element's size in relation to others.
• Texture - a texture can be interesting to the eye or make it difficult to notice other elements. Different textures may blend into each other or enhance each other.
• Curvature - unlike the shape, which is unique to one element, curvature may be a result of the arrangement of several objects, or part of a background. Curvature can lead the viewer's eye towards or away from an element.
• Pattern - a pattern is a recurring element within a scene. It can be a recurring shape or texture that is replicated in multiple elements.
• Color - some colors work better with others, vivid colors attract attention away from lighter ones. Again - depending on what you want the viewer to be drawn to, you must take these effects into account.
• Tone - in color photography, pay attention to different shades of the same colors. In black-and-white photography, different colors may be rendered in a similar way depending on their tone. Tone is also a product of how an element is lit and its reflective qualities.
  

Putting it All Together

The best pictures differentiate themselves by nuances...a tiny relationship - either a harmony or a disharmony - that creates a picture. - Ernst Haas

Let's go through an exercise of analyzing the image on the right.

First let's inventory our elements:

• The island in the distance
• The water line
• The clouds
• The lake
• The lakeshore
• The foreground rocks
• The snow
• The dead plants
  

Working with elements and attributes:

When you come upon this scene, what grabs your eye first? Perhaps, the pattern in the water, caused by a strong wind, then the shape of the island in the distance. Note how arranged are the elements - the curvature in the snow is used to lead the viewer towards the water line to a point where the island and patterns on the water come together. The other elements in the scene are secondary and used to enhance the effect - the texture and size of the foreground rocks help define the curvature of the snow. The tones in the sky and clouds help separate the island from the lake and draw attention to its brightness.

Why Black and White?

There is no hard and fast rule when to use color vs. black and white. The trick is to be able to visualize a scene in black and white before making the final selection. If you notice from the analysis of the image above the attention was drawn to patterns, shapes, curvature, etc. Color is not what attracted me to the scene. The trick to "seeing" in black and white is to recognize tones, or densities, of colors in a scene. Similar tones will be rendered the same regardless of the actual color. This can be used to eliminate distractions caused by the combination of different colors or by colors that are unattractive to the eye (as was the case with this scene).

Another important fact, albeit of a technical nature, to keep in mind is that black and white film has a much wider latitude than color film, thus allowing a much wider range of tones to be captured. In scenes where such subtleties are important, black and white will often produce more impressive images.

Planning and Preparation

Chance favors the prepared mind. - Louis Pasteur

A photograph freezes a moment in time. Beautiful and inspiring phenomena happen every day in many places at many times. Most of these moments pass unrecorded. How can you increase your chances of witnessing such a moment and successfully capturing it on film? The old boy scout credo stands true - be prepared. Very rarely can we predict a scene with any kind of certainty, but the more we know about an area, the greater the chances we'll be able to portray it at a decisive moment.

Several things can improve your odds of success:

• Know where you're going and what you plan to photograph - visit the area at least once with no intention of taking images -scout for good locations, visualize a variety of compositions, make an inventory of available elements and examine the most interesting ones from different angles and perspectives. Some photographers take a template with them into the field - a hollow frame representing the same width and height ratio as their camera's frame size, then hold it at various distances from their eye to help visualize how a certain focal length will capture a given scene.
• Learn the light - check with the local weather service for the precise times of sunrise and sunset, make a note of the most favorable direction of light for a given scene.
• Learn the weather - know in advance whether you can expect clouds or rain or bright sunlight. Try for the weather condition that best enhances your scene. Know when there's a chance of brightly colored clouds, or rainbows, or a dark heavy backdrop of storm clouds or bright blue skies.
• Be there ahead of time - give yourself time to set up, to make last minute adjustments, to respond to changing conditions. Have the camera mounted and focused, your filters in place, and your film loaded ahead of time so you are ready to trip the shutter at exactly the right moment. Bring a book or a notepad or a second camera body to help pass the time, if you need to.
  

While there's no denying that some amazing images are the result of pure chance, the only way to ensure consistently good results is to take the time, prepare, and plan. Visit the same area a number of times, at different times of the day, possibly even at different seasons. The better you know it, the more successful you will be. Don't be afraid to leave empty handed if things don't look quite right. Try again another time.

Beyond the Scene - You Cannot Capture What You Do Not Have

I see magic in the quiet light of dusk. I feel quiet, yet intense energy in the natural elements of our habitat. A sense of magic prevails, a sense of mystery. It is a time for contemplation, for listening - a time for making photographs. -John Sexton

A salesperson can convince you of something they do not believe in themself. An artist cannot compromise his honesty and integrity and still create inspiration. You must be inspired to inspire others. You must be excited about a scene to induce such excitement in the viewer. I can remember many times, witnessing a beautiful scene, but not capturing it on film because I did not feel up to it - I was distracted by other people, by lack of time, or any number of other reasons. I knew from experience that the image would not turn out well. I also knew that when I view it myself at a later time, I would be reminded of the foul mood I was in.

Landscape photography is an art - think like an artist, not like a photographer. Make your goal the expression of yourself, rather than the capturing of a scene. Bring yourself to the same point a painter or a poet would - be excited, moved, inspired, then proceed to use photography as a means of expression. Put your own interpretation, your own decisions, and your own feelings, into each image. Do not rely on the subject or technique alone. Those are important skills, but much like in writing - knowing the language and how to use a keyboard are not sufficient to produce a great novel or a poem. Much like painting - knowing how to mount a canvas and work with paint and brushes is not enough to create a masterpiece.