Hacking Photography - one Picture at a time
I very often have this strong negative reaction when a newsletter arrives in my inbox or I see an online article where the heading, for instance, reads: “5 rules to follow when composing an image” — or something to that effect.
I would have been far more positive if the heading read: “10 approaches to consider when composing a landscape image”.
I have plenty of personal preferences when it comes to photography. However, I try to avoid making rules or laws based on what I prefer.
Proper composition and food styling are important ingredients of food photography. If you want to take your food photos to a higher level, Joanie Simon of The Bite Shot introduces a mini-series of videos to help you improve composition and take delicious-looking photos of food.
The Rule of Thirds is the first composition rule most of us have learned when we started doing photography. There are times when it works, of course – but sometimes, centering your subject is a much better choice, yet many photographers tend to avoid it. In this video, Haze Kware of Hk Visuals discusses when centering your subjects is a better option and how it can improve your photography.
With image making tech advancing rapidly and high-res devices becoming increasingly affordable, the distinguishing features between amateur and professional photography are not always easy to discern. However, one element which I found that distinguishes the two is what I have come to refer to as VC. It is the stand out feature between the raws coming out of the image making devices of a pro and an amateur, even if both use the the exact same gear.
I always thought it was interesting that we call vertical shots “portrait” orientation and that horizontal shots are “landscape” – especially as I rarely seem to shoot portraits in “portrait” orientation. But should you shoot portraits in landscape orientation? Photographer Bernie Raffe thinks so and in this video, he offers up six reasons why you should (probably) always shoot portraits in landscape.
Regardless of whether you shoot photography or video, or what kind of gear you shoot with, the one thing we all have complete control over is our composition. There’s a lot written about composition, about the “rule of thirds”, golden ratios, and leading lines, but composition can be a difficult one to grasp.
Kevin, the Basic Filmmaker talks about composition and developing your eye in this video. But not in the way you might think. He talks specifically about something I used to struggle with all the time, and occasionally still do. And that’s ignoring things in the background and edges of the shot that I should be paying attention to!
When we talk about the rules of composition, the Rule of Thirds or the Golden Ratio are probably the first that come to mind to most of us. But there is something about centeredness and symmetry, too. Could “The Middle Line” be the secret rule of composition in visual arts? In this video from Light Club, you’ll see plenty of powerful photos and movie frames revolving around a fictional or a physical middle line. And when you see how many famous works have it, you’ll see that there’s something about it, indeed.
I like to use the leading lines technique because the world is just chock full of lines and so it just can’t be helped – but I also like to think it’s because it makes me feel that my photo is going to take you somewhere. Sometimes the destination is not so important, it’s the journey that counts. And don’t we all like that feeling like we are actually going somewhere? So, be it a road, or a dotted line, or the sweep of an arc, a line will take you places.
All those “rules” around composition, and ultimately none of them are infallible. We’re often told about things like the rule of thirds, and others to help us improve our photography. We’re also often told that we can break them. So, are they really rules? No, they’re guidelines. But they need to be understood in order know how to break them effectively.
Photographer Eric Floberg knows how to break them quite effectively, and he’s put this video together with five of his favourite portrait composition ideas. They’re not just for portraits, though. Some of these can work equally as well for macro, landscapes and other subjects if you think about them carefully.
Most of us have our favorite location for taking photos, a place that inspires us more than the others. But have you ever photographed the same place, from the exact same spot, a few days in a row? In this interesting video, Norwegian photographer Oddbjørn Austevik has done just that. And the result shows you that you can get six different photos even if you photograph the exact same composition day after day.
You can find out more about John on his website and follow his adventures on YouTube and Facebook.
can change a lens mid-rappel, swap a memory card while treading water, or use a camel as a light stand.
To see more of his work please visit his studio website blurMEDIAphotography, or follow him on Twitter, 500px, Google Plus or YouTube.
JP’s photography is available for licensing at Stocksy United.
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