Composition is the placement or arrangement of visual elements or ingredients in a work of art, as distinct from the subject of a work. It can also be thought of as the organization of the elements of art according to the principles of art.
2
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3answers
499 views
What is a good composition style for photographs like these?
In my photography classes and online resources, I have learned about photographing the subject with a space to breathe in the photograph.
But there are several photos in which the head is facing bit ...
9
votes
3answers
325 views
How to capture fog movement?
As much as I enjoy pictures of fog or mist, I find that I can't express its movement.
I'd like to capture the sort of dance that fog performs with other objects.
The way it moves and surrounds ...
6
votes
3answers
155 views
Subject alongside, at the intersection or inside lines in composition rules?
I have been reading different articles on photo composition. These discuss rules of thirds, triangles, and golden ratio, each suggesting different and contradicting approaches. Some of them say to ...
2
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2answers
156 views
Subject out of center — what is correct term?
Composition which consists of placing the topic or main subject to the side and never in center of the picture: does that technique have a name?
0
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3answers
152 views
Is there any software or phone camera app that can give advice about composition?
Is there any software/ phone camera app that can give advice about composition while shooting an image? Or would it be possible develop an app for that?
For example, maybe giving advice about the ...
5
votes
3answers
178 views
Incorporating haze into landscapes
When shooting landscapes in Western India, I often have a serious problem with haze. The air can often be dusty outside cities and polluted inside. Shooting in the golden hour doesn't always help ...
-1
votes
1answer
95 views
strong colour photo compositions [closed]
How do you take photographs with strong colour compositions? I have a canon 60D and Im a learner. Do you have any tips / best practices you could share?
I would like to take pictures like the ones on ...
3
votes
3answers
331 views
What is the best way to accurately position camera parallel to subject?
I'm having a hard time getting my lens to perfectly align parallel to the subject. This is very important when photographing subjects such as buildings or interiors. Do I just need to practice seeing ...
3
votes
6answers
319 views
Rule of thirds — is there any scientific proof behind it?
I learned about rule of thirds only recently, and it excited me a lot, and it seems to apply to a lot of situations.
But my question is why does it make pictures look more appealing? Does it have ...
8
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3answers
331 views
Still-life reconstruction considered plagiarism?
I am really bad at still lifes. That is, I never even attempted making one. So I decided to try and make a photo of freshly baked bread. I stumbled across a few amazing shots on the Internet which I ...
2
votes
3answers
350 views
How do I create a sense of power and splendor in an image?
I'm trying to take that convey strong emotional feelings, and I would like to know whether there is any particular color scheme or type of picture that would convey a feeling of power and/or splendor.
...
3
votes
6answers
397 views
When do you center your subject in environmental portraits?
When I shoot environmental portraits, I usually place my subject off center. However, I've seen instances where the photographer has intentionally centered their subject. Here is an example: ...
5
votes
1answer
275 views
How do triangles work as a tool for composition?
I've heard that triangles can be used as a tool in composition. Why would I pay attention to triangles, or structure an image around this shape?
What particular significance do triangles have, ...
11
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4answers
542 views
What are connotations of horizontal and vertical lines in composition?
From my question on diagonal dominance I learned that diagonals are used in many subtle ways, like guiding viewer's eye, expressing depth or energy.
How do horizontal and vertical lines affect ...
40
votes
8answers
18k views
What is the 'Golden Ratio' and why is it better than the 'Rule of Thirds?'
Somebody recently told me that I will be able to compose more pleasing pictures if I use the Golden Ratio instead of the Rule of Thirds, and that the Rule of Thirds was an inferior way to compose ...
-1
votes
3answers
300 views
How can I make this food photo more interesting? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What do I need to know to get started with food photography?
I am a food blogger and am beginning to learn photography. I need suggestions on how to take better ...
2
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0answers
101 views
Learning path for better lighting and composition [closed]
I have been a hobbyist photographer with my 5 year old Nikon D40 (18-55mm) until now. I do get occasional good shots, but most of them are not satisfying in terms of good lighting and composition.
I ...
6
votes
2answers
889 views
What is a point of interest in a photograph and where is it lacking in this candle picture?
I've been told that this picture has no point of interest.
Does this mean that there are too many elements in focus here?
I would like to understand the meaning and the reasons behind it and how to ...
7
votes
4answers
500 views
What is the proper composition when shooting two persons standing by each another?
EDITED
When shooting a photo with two persons in the foreground and an out of focus/blurred background (no objects apart of the couple), what is the proper composition to place them?
EDITED
I made ...
5
votes
3answers
219 views
Taking sports and action shots with regular lenses
I do not shoot action or sports photos. I was asked to shoot a friend's soccer game. I am not looking for perfect magazine quality images; however, I'd like to maximize the quality of my shots with ...
14
votes
5answers
2k views
Tricks for a good “jumping” picture?
Too many jumping pictures can be annoying, but I would like to once in a while be able to make a good one.
Here is a bad one:
What characteristics make a jump picture impressive?
How to reach ...
2
votes
2answers
102 views
What should I look for in taking pictures of a historic prison?
I need some helpful advice for for an onsite shoot coming up. We are going to the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield, Ohio. We are going to be there for almost an entire day. What I need is advice on ...
0
votes
1answer
406 views
How to make some nice photographs of midday sun? [closed]
Can i get some ideas on how to photograph midday sun to make it interesting?
The fact why I ask this question is that photographing the midday sun alone gives a dumb photograph.
Only idea that ...
7
votes
2answers
381 views
How can I make my beach shots more interesting?
I like to visit beaches on my vacation, so I always come back with shots of the shore and sand. They always turn out quite boring, and I'm not sure what they are missing generally speaking to really ...
5
votes
3answers
586 views
When taking a picture, where should the horizon be?
I know and understand the rule of thirds, but I would like to know, when taking a picture of something such as a tree, should the horizon be positioned on the top or bottom third line?
28
votes
6answers
2k views
Why take diagonal photos?
In the "old days" I sometimes composed my photos diagonally, but I've not had success doing that in the "modern" era, because there's not really any nice way to present it digitally.
Is there a ...
3
votes
2answers
731 views
How can I improve the composition of my food photos?
I am extremely new to food photography and blogging. I am trying to get on foodgawker.com to drive more traffic to my site, but they rejected this photo due to the composition being too tight. If ...
36
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14answers
2k views
Can anyone suggest books/resources on the artistic side of photography?
I am a relatively new photographer. I have no problem understanding the technical side of photography (I am an engineer by trade), but I do struggle with the more 'artistic' side of photography ...
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vote
2answers
512 views
How do I use a 6x4 grid in the viewfinder?
The new Canon 5D Mark III allow you to activate a 6x4 grid in the viewfinder. Does anyone know the use of such a grid (instead of a more classic 3x3) for composition, besides obvious ...
4
votes
4answers
1k views
When would one choose a 50mm f/1.4 over 85mm f/1.8 (or vice versa) for portraits?
Say you are using a crop body, and you have both 50mm/1.4 USM and 85mm/1.8 USM lens in your bag. Now, you want to take a portrait where there is adequate light and space, and you have decided to take ...
14
votes
5answers
512 views
How to make transparent liquid on white porcelain visible?
I made a picture for the cooking.SE blog:
If you look very hard, in the middle, below the vanilla bean tip, is a small spill of synthetic vanilla essence (which is almost colorless, not dark like ...
12
votes
5answers
939 views
Can photographic composition rules be used in cinematography?
We all know that photographic composition has certain rules like the rule of thirds, diagonal lines, etc. I am wondering whether those same rules can be applied in cinematography. Can they?
I ...
19
votes
5answers
605 views
How to capture the scale of a scene?
My framing in the following photo completely failed to capture the sheer height of the waterfall. If you don't know I was standing at the top of the waterfall, and the "splinters" at the bottom are ...
9
votes
8answers
409 views
How do I get myself to think about every shot using modern digital equipment?
In today's age of fully automated digital cameras, I find it difficult to seriously think about every picture I take before I press the shutter button. The experience is, from what I can tell, ...
7
votes
2answers
466 views
What and how to crop?
When I take a photo of something like a building, I tend to shoot the whole building, because later I want to get the feeling and impression I had when I took this photo. I want to transfer these ...
3
votes
1answer
256 views
How do you photograph sand dunes?
In 2010 I was lucky enough to visit Death Valley. While we were there we went to the sand dunes.
I took this shot
Its not how I remembered the scene, It seems as if a lot of the detail has been ...
-5
votes
7answers
317 views
What can be identified as a subject in a landscape photograph comprising of things which are equally important?
From here: Does this sunrise photograph have a problem with white balance?
[comment by Rob]
I know this Q is not asking for image critique and although I like the image I think its lacking ...
4
votes
8answers
564 views
How to *make* a nature photograph?
I found this scene to be quite beautiful for sure, but when I look at it from the photographer's view point, I find that that person just went there, saw the scene, clicked the photo and returned ...
32
votes
3answers
4k views
What is the “Rule of Thirds”?
Please can someone explain the "Rule of Thirds"?
What is it?
What does it tell me?
Why is it important?
What can I do with it?
2
votes
4answers
306 views
How to compose a scene which doesn't have any apparent story?
On 1x people often say that to complete a story you need to have a third element. Fine, but what can you do when you don't have a human around to pose for you?
How to compose the following scene so ...
7
votes
3answers
678 views
When should I break the rule of thirds?
When photographers talk about the rule of thirds, they say sometimes they will break the rule and still the photo will have great composition. When should I stick with the rule of thirds and when ...
2
votes
2answers
940 views
Why does the viewfinder of the Nikon D90 have a 4×4 grid instead of 3×3?
I was amazed that viewfinder of my camera has a 4 x 4 grid. Why is this? There's no 3 x 3 grid. Sad. What is the reason to did it so? Is it possible to fix it (upgrade software of camera)? What ...
3
votes
3answers
520 views
What is the “visual center” of an image?
I've heard that one of the tricks designers use for a more effective result is placing an object in the visual center.
Where is the visual center in an image, why is it important, and how could it be ...
1
vote
4answers
320 views
How to show the theme “What happened??”
I wanted to show the theme "What happened??" here. I showed this to some non-photographers, they couldn't make out anything out of this.
What can I do here to improve the composition?
27
votes
4answers
2k views
What is the 'Diagonal Method' and should I use it instead of 'The Rule of Thirds?'
I recently was in a discussion with a photography mentor who asserted that over the years he has composed most of his award-winning and/or 'most popular' photographs using the 'Diagonal Method,' and ...
4
votes
2answers
227 views
What would be examples of Principle of Alternation, other than chiaroscuro?
I watched this video of Online Art Academy about Design Principle of Alternation, where alternating light and dark is used to add rhythm, interest and vitality into composition.
An obvious example of ...
1
vote
2answers
228 views
How to shoot water spilled on the floor?
I am planning a scene with water spilled on a floor or desk. The floor and desks have designs which will be distracting for my shot.
I am thinking of placing a paper sheet as a back drop.
Which ...
11
votes
2answers
589 views
What is a negative space in a photograph?
From here: http://1x.com/forum/photo-critique/31871
you have far too much negative space so the eye goes toward the back...of the picture, and there is not much to see there...either.
What ...
0
votes
3answers
228 views
How to improve the composition flaw in this candle photograph?
From here: http://1x.com/forum/bookmarked/31716/critique-on-photo-untitled
it's unbalanced. It almost looks like two images beside each other - one of the lying down candles and one of the upright ...
9
votes
6answers
536 views
What can I do to improve my composition on rejected food photos?
I have been working on improving my food photography skills to raise the overall look of my blog. I am shooting with a Sony A100 often a 50mm in natural light. I think I am doing pretty well so far ...
