Composition

Photo by Marion West

Photo composition is how you the photographer arranges the elements of your image.

So where to start? First with your camera in hand go out and shoot photos. Doesn’t matter if it’s digital or film. Doesn’t matter if it’s your smartphone or a $5000 top-of-the-line DSLR. Go out and shoot and shoot and shoot.

Some of you will have the artistic talent to be able to “see” a photograph in front of you before you even raise the camera. The rest of us struggle and practice and so again go out shooting a lot and sooner or later your images will get “better”.

Ok then what’s better?

There are rules and they do apply (but not necessarily in all cases). I’m going to link to a great list of composition rules and techniques published online by PetaPixel that has 28 composition techniques that will make your images better.

Of course there is the rule of thirds where you divide the frame into 9 equal rectangles, 3 across and 3 down and where the lines intersect is where to put the main elements of your image. By putting your main points of interest (a person, a building, the dog) on these intersecting points your image will look more dynamic and less like a snap shot. You will see this rule being applied in the majority of published images.

Another rule and for this one we can thank one of my fellow teachers Michael Willems who said there is always a garbage can in every image. What he means is you should take the time to check your background before taking the photo as often there’s something distracting or out of place that you have missed. For example you can take hours setting up a pristine landscape image and when you get home to edit it you’ll see the small plastic white garbage bag over by the tree. Happens all the time.

My favourite “rule” was to encourage new photographers to move in closer, much closer, than they feel comfortable. Fill the frame and don’t hesitate to lop off elbows or ears (never feet and usually not hands) and your images will have more energy. Most people shoot from way too far back.

Shoot your kids (not literally) from their eye level. Everybody shoots babies from above. Don’t! Put the kid on the floor and get the camera down to floor level and shoot at their eye level. Your baby images and images of the kids and the dog and cat will just pop.

Composition can be learned and it’s what separates the artistic image from the snapshot.