Part 21 - Composition Basics

Although the articles concerning DSLR mechanics will continue, you are probably tired of just learning about the camera, and want to put into practice everything you have learned.

Let's do that. The next several articles will discuss the basics of composition and what makes one picture a snapshot and another an artistically compelling image. After each of these articles, I hope to provide you with compositional guidelines that you can immediately put to use in your own photography.

There are two issues that I will to put to rest immediately.

• Snapshots are good. Everyone takes snapshots. Snapshots document the lives and events of those most dear to you and your family. Snapshots are what made photography possible, popular and affordable. Take snapshots. I do.
• You will be shown many "rules" of photographic composition in the coming articles. Almost every author who tackles this subject will begin by saying something like this, "the rules of photographic composition are not set in stone, and can be broken as the photographer sees fit." Although there is truth in this statement, I don't believe this is good advice for photographers who are beginning the difficult process of educating their photographic eye. Instead, I ask that you STRICTLY follow the rules presented here. Why? If you haven't practised and mastered the basic rules of composition, you will never know when they can be altered or broken, or how. Trust me. With consistent practice you will develop your own style and know EXACTLY when the rules should or shouldn't be followed. Start your understanding of composition now, but consider each rule to be photographic gospel. Promise me.
  

Photographic Composition

The goal of photographic composition is to visually communicate, to the viewer, a point-of-view and/or emotion experienced by the photographer at the time the image was originally taken, and which is now constrained within the 4 borders of a print. This lofty goal is achieved through the effective organization and manipulation of relationships between picture elements to provide reality in a two dimensional photograph. This process also implies that components of a scene that do not contribute to the subject or message should be eliminated.

So, before laying down these "temporary" hard and fast rules of composition, I'll begin by identifying the visual elements a photographer controls and manipulates to communicate his/her vision.

Lines

Lines contained in a picture can be either actual or implied. When lines are correctly managed, they direct the viewer's eye into the picture's central subject or give direction to implied motion.

In this picture, the lines of the dock and bridge focus the viewer's eyes on the Portland skyline (orange arrows).


Here, the location of the bow of the boat and the billowing sails provide an implied direction or line of motion (yellow arrow).

Lines are powerful visual cues to the viewer that can work for, or against, your picture. Lines that lead away from, or aren't part of the implied motion of your subject, distract the viewer from "seeing" your theme or subject.

Contrast

Contrast refers to the difference in densities (light and dark) between adjacent objects in a picture.

Although this image has some aesthetic appeal, the lack of contrast requires the viewer to search for a central point of interest.


The enhanced contrast in this version provides visual detail and central focus for the viewer.

Proper control of contrast adds detail and visual interest, drawing the viewer into the subject of the picture.

Jargon Alert: The term "pop" is often used to explain this visual trait of detail contrast.

Tone

Tone, as applied to photographic composition, includes the variations in color -- or shades of gray in black and white photography -- that lend depth and visual cues to focus the viewer's eye on the subject(s) of the picture.

The distribution of gray tones in this picture naturally attracts the eye to the lighter portion of the image. The darker areas surrounding the subject aid in framing the subject and focusing the viewer's attention.

Both the degree of light and dark in color (or grays), as well as nuances in the overall color tone of an image, contribute to identifying the picture's central subject. Light tones are perceived as advancing whereas dark colors appear to recede, so tone plays a significant role in providing depth to an image."

Mass

Mass in photographic composition is the accumulation of similar densities, tones or colors that visually merge to appear as a single object.

The sheer volume and similar coloration of this fungus-covered hillside visually merges the individual plants into a single mass that identifies the moss as the picture's central subject.

Be aware of the contributing factors to "mass" in a photograph, as they can work together to become your central theme or become a visual distraction.

Depth of Field

As has been discussed in previous Parts of this primer, depth of field is the total distance (from the point closest to the camera to the point farthest from the camera) that is in focus in a picture.

The shallow depth of field provides a sense of distance between the foreground flower and the background.

The human eye is subject to the same depth of field rules as the camera lens. Our eye/brain combination interprets objects that are out of focus to be farther away than the objects that are in focus. By controlling the depth of field captured and exhibited in our photographs, we provide the viewer's eyes with the same visual clues encountered in nature.

Main subjects that span a great distance require extreme depth of field

Some scenes (for example, landscapes as shown above) demand extreme amounts of depth of field to bring all the components of the image into focus and convey the vastness of the environment. It is the photographer who determines how much of a scene should be in focus as well as the f/stop and shutter speed combination that will produce the desired effect.

These five fundamental photographic picture elements will be the tools we use to create our finest photographic art.

The next article will begin discussing the basic rules of composition that allow us to effectively organize and control these elements to craft images that are meaningful to ourselves, and to our viewers.