Photography Tips of The Week #4

BETTER COMPOSITION & FRAMING

PART 1 : RULE OF THIRDS

Just like any other form of visual arts like painting, architecture and even on film, photography also rely on a good composition or framing to better translate the thoughts of the author into the minds of the viewer or spectator. Composition in photography is a very broad subject, but nonetheless, still follows the same methods or rules as in any art to achieve a better quality. Elements such as light & shadows, colors, textures, shapes & forms, and even dimensions help us to create a better composition for our photographs.

 

Composition is the combining of distinct parts or elements to form a whole. In photography that thought is very important in taking good pictures. The following guidelines are just to be thought about though, it is not necessary to try to use them with every picture you take or there wouldn't be any creativity in your work. Once you learn these rules and strategies you will be more prepared to find great picture spots and opportunities.

Framing is the tactic of using natural surroundings to add more meaning to your subject. It could be anything such as bushes, trees, a window, or even a drift wood like in the picture above. In the process of doing this you need to be careful that you don't only focus on what's framing your subject. Make sure you focus on the main subject, and also it is a good idea to use a narrow aperture (high f/stop) to achieve a high depth-of-field. It also wouldn't hurt if the part of the picture framing the subject was darker or lighter so make sure you take your light reading on the main subject.

For years, photographers followed and created a number of rules or ideals in their composition. Below are few samples of those rules. There would be a lot of interpretations by different photographers on each of these rules.  So it would still be best just to gather all versions that you can, and then derive from them your own.

Here are from my own thoughts and works… 

THE RULE OF THIRDS

The Rule of Thirds has been used for centuries and is probably the most important of all the composition techniques. The Rule of Thirds means that the frame can be divided into three horizontal sections and three vertical sections and therefore, where the horizontal and vertical lines intersect makes an ideal location for the more important parts of your picture. By locating your main subject at one of the four intersections you give the subject more emphasis than if it was right smack in the middle of the picture. This is also a good technique if you have more than one important subject, the intersections can still work even if there's a subject or more than one. The divisions can also be helpful in setting up a picture, they can for example, help you determine how much horizon you want. Most famous photographs or paintings in the world today have the rule of thirds applied to them in some way.

As I have explained on my the workshops, the reason for having this rule is not just because of the positioning of your subject, but mostly on how the eye of the viewer should be directed in the photograph. There must be a single directionality for the flow.

It is you that should command that flow, in the way you would want the viewer’s eyes to travel along your image, and the way you would want to narrate your story.

Poetry in Nature

Poetry in Nature. I have always been fascinated by the magical world of macro photography. As if looking into another realm of fantasy. While learning my craft in this genre, I discovered another facet of nature amidst its simplicity... the drama of shapes, the harmony of colors, and its magical connection with sunlight. I found the Poetry in Nature.

Since then, I always try to capture a different view of the little things that we see in nature. The changing colors, the varying textures, the abstract of life itself on a minuscule scale. Far from the ordinary photographs of flowers or insects, capturing the poetry of nature is more on understanding its essence and the relation to one another. Seeing them in a different view, not merely as subjects, but works or arts waiting to be painted in your canvas.

Last Monday, I was supposed to have a meeting with a new client, but was canceled due to his health. Instead of going back home, I decided to look for a place to shoot, since I already have my gears with me. With the sun getting low... and with Manila Bay taking more than an hour to reach, I opted to visit my friends again in wildlife (NAPWC) for a macro shoot. But to my dismay, not a single flower or butterflies in sight! Not even tiny insects to greet my macro lens!!! We'll of course, mosquitoes and flies are more than eager to welcome me. 

I just don't understand how a Nature Park could not have any single flower, and it's been raining for the past days. Anyway, It didn't dampen my spirit... (or just a tiny bit ^_^)  I just went ahead and scower the place as I normally do. Looking like a fool, bending here and there, with nose down in the grasses.

Thank Heavens for the leaves and wild grasses, I didn't come home empty handed. But rather quite happy with my finds. They may not be what I expected, but they are rather exquisite, bathed in the setting sun.

After awhile, I did find some small insects nesting on leaves. Though they're not as interesting to me as a butterfly or a bee, still, I manage to get some decent shots out of them.

As the light were getting low and the clouds were getting darker, I decided it was time to head home. But on my way back, I spotted a tiny flower hidden behind the leaves of a fallen tree. I don't know what kind of flowering tree it was, but am sure was grateful to have met him. It was dangling from a branch and not really visible from the path, so I guess, Lady Luck must have smiled at me.

Now my friends are complete!... it was time to go home and get ready for a brief exercise. (It's just a walking distance from wildlife to my place in Matalino St.) I may have wasted a small amount of time and taxi fare going to a canceled appointment, but I did have a great time visiting old friends in Ninoy Aquino Parks and Wildlife Center.