Composition in photography

[Swampy]

Great pano, Frank!

I cropped to the fountain since it is a point of interest in the overall image. I used the golden rule to find the sweet spot, but adjusted the actual crop a little large to get a little more sky.

[LonK]

Well done Swampy!

OK Frank. I'll play. Of course there are several ways to effectively crop this. As a pano scenic, there is no presumptive central subject other than the scene itself.

For my first composition, I choose an active portrait crop featuring the tall, stark, darker trees. The shoreline forms a dynamic "S" curve providing a path for the eye to follow through the scene. By including a bit of land in the foreground, the feeling of depth is increased. Depth is further supported through the symmetrical reflections of the trees in the water. The dark trees on the left balance the warm colorful trees on the right.

The second landscape composition utilizes the Rule of Thirds. The tall trees balance the floral tree in the foreground. Diagonal leading lines along the grass (and clouds), and the warmer central colors draw the viewer into the scene. The reflections and curved shoreline further support this more passive composition.

In both, I took the liberty of including some wispy clouds to give the stark sky a bit more character and kicked up the saturation some.

[Swampy]

Well, done, Lonnie. Especially like the second one.

[palms1]

I found this a hard challenge as there seems to be quite a few crops that could happen plus i made the mistake of looking at the other posts first
but i chose this crop as

1. the fountain i think loosely fits into the rule of thirds
2. the buggys have room to move
3. the bank has a curve to it as does the road and the hill

but i am not sure about the lines as the hill line seems to be across the middle

well how did this novice at composition do?

Palms

[0lBaldy]

Great Shoot/Shot Frank .. Thanks for the exercise

I see at least 8 excellent individual pictures (crops) here depending upon what you want to emphasize.

I presumed you wanted a Pano..

I looked at all the points of interest and flow of the crop ..
I straightened a bit then cropped as my old eyes told me to for a Pano..

The Pano worked for me so here tis

[LonK]

Originally Posted by palms1

...well how did this novice at composition do?

A preponderance of strong horizontal and/or vertical lines generally makes for a rather static composition (though sometimes that's desired). What I see in your crop are two distinct lines that essentially cut the image into 2, 3, even 4 discrete parts. Also, because the fountain is so small and isolated, it's almost distracting. I feel the carts are also too small to considered points of interest.

Try this: cover the left half -> nice, cover the right half -> nice.

[MatthewMarshall]

I try not to follow rules and over think what i do. I just do. I dont think in m y head is this well in the norm of the "rules" of composition. I just take photos that i like at the time. It seems to have worked out for me so far.

[Janet Petty]

I'm going to take the 5th on this pano. I see possibilities for individual pictures; but the pano as a whole works for me.

On the other hand, I might just cut some off the right side as I'm looking at it. It still keeps a pano feel to the picture but takes some of the excessive length. More in proportion with the golden mean.

Janet

P.S. No pic to post. My computer is having a clean-up, update.

[Frank Lopes]

Janet,

I think you are right about the extra length on the right side. It doesn't belong in the picture. At least for me, it doesn't.

Lonk,

I agree with you that the "S" curve on the left, should be preserved. For me, it gives it an interesting sense of motion that goes against the static up and down of the trees.

Here is what I ended up doing. Please comment on it.

Originally Posted by Janet Petty

...
On the other hand, I might just cut some off the right side as I'm looking at it. It still keeps a pano feel to the picture but takes some of the excessive length. More in proportion with the golden mean.
Janet

[Janet Petty]

Frank, you cropped it exactly where I would have put the crop.

I think it preserves the S curve, the rule of thirds, and is a pleasing proportion.

Janet

[Nikolas]

Interesting discussion so far, and forgive me for having to disagree with most of what has been said. I, like many of the people here, am familiar with the rules of composition, after having them pounded in my head over several years of film school. I disagree though, that rules and conventions are what define a good photograph.

Photography is more then grabbing a camera and capturing what we see; it is a means to put oneself in that place again when one looks at the picture in the future; it is a means to share the beauty of life in one still frame; it is a means to share the intricate balance and harmony between man and nature. Every photograph, in its own right, does this, and, by some means, will be appealing to someone.

When I'm out with my camera, I'm not thinking about the composition of the image, or where to place things so that they are more 'visually appealing'; I'm thinking about what I WANT out of the images, and what STORY I want to tell with these images. Thinking this way helps me point my camera and capture the image I'm looking for, without much grief.

This idea of the rule of thirds is an age old means of defining what is visually appealing. However, the very definition of creativity is the use of the imagination and original ideas, especially in an artistic work. By defining work as falling within the conventions of the rule of thirds, or any other compositional rule, we strip away the photographers creativity, and creative right.

Ultimately, my argument is that we should never define how well composed a photograph is simply by the 'standard conventions'. Take risks. Tell a story. Be creative.

[TreesOfMyTime]

Originally Posted by Nikolas

Interesting discussion so far, and forgive me for having to disagree with most of what has been said. I, like many of the people here, am familiar with the rules of composition, after having them pounded in my head over several years of film school. I disagree though, that rules and conventions are what define a good photograph.

Photography is more then grabbing a camera and capturing what we see; it is a means to put oneself in that place again when one looks at the picture in the future; it is a means to share the beauty of life in one still frame; it is a means to share the intricate balance and harmony between man and nature. Every photograph, in its own right, does this, and, by some means, will be appealing to someone.

When I'm out with my camera, I'm not thinking about the composition of the image, or where to place things so that they are more 'visually appealing'; I'm thinking about what I WANT out of the images, and what STORY I want to tell with these images. Thinking this way helps me point my camera and capture the image I'm looking for, without much grief.

This idea of the rule of thirds is an age old means of defining what is visually appealing. However, the very definition of creativity is the use of the imagination and original ideas, especially in an artistic work. By defining work as falling within the conventions of the rule of thirds, or any other compositional rule, we strip away the photographers creativity, and creative right.

Ultimately, my argument is that we should never define how well composed a photograph is simply by the 'standard conventions'. Take risks. Tell a story. Be creative.

The rules have come about through a sort of "reverse engineering" of what is considered good art. And it does not alway work. But then, it does help to give folks a "road map" of sorts to begin to help them to "see".

[palms1]

Originally Posted by LonK

A preponderance of strong horizontal and/or vertical lines generally makes for a rather static composition (though sometimes that's desired). What I see in your crop are two distinct lines that essentially cut the image into 2, 3, even 4 discrete parts. Also, because the fountain is so small and isolated, it's almost distracting. I feel the carts are also too small to considered points of interest.

Try this: cover the left half -> nice, cover the right half -> nice.

Thank you Lonk for your input, I find this to be quite tricky although interesting, And i find it is easier to learn by doing excersises like this one, and that is what i liked about your first link the do and not do photo's


Palms

[Janet Petty]

Palms, that might be a good tangent for this discussion thread. If we could post examples and learn from them, then it will take us to a whole new dimension of learning.

Janet

[hawkeye60]

Great topic. This is a picture I took in Morocco last year, without any real thought towards composition, this is the way I cropped it. Just what I felt was pleasing to my eye.

I'd be interested in the thoughts of others, as to how they would have treated it. And why.