Photography as Art

An introduction to composition

Over the nearly 200 years since photography was invented, it has gradually evolved into an art form and even more gradually become accepted and recognized as an art form. What exactly distinguishes a snapshot from a photographic work of art is a difficult concept to explain. I think most serious photographers can tell the difference but are hard pressed to explain it.

This article is based on some basic technical aspects, including color, composition, and light. This article will concentrate on composition. Composition is the most fundamental aspect of photography that differentiates artistic photography from family and vacation snapshots. In simplest terms, composition is the arrangement of elements in the scene to create a final image. The arrangement of the elements, especially the main subject, is important to convey whatever message you're trying to send to your audience. 

As you read through this, keep in mind that it is coming from a nature photographer's perspective. I am not qualified to write specifically about any other form of photography, but I can tell you with confidence that these are fundamental concepts that can be applied to any and all types of photography.

The Rules

There are many so called rules of composition that if mastered, will help you tremendously in your quest for the perfect photograph. However! Rules are made to be broken and this is no less true for photography. Learn the rules, learn to apply them, and then learn how you can break them. Once you master the art of breaking the rules you'll be able to develop you own unique style instead of being just another skilled photographer. Use the rules as a guide, not a mandate.

Don't try to apply every rule to every photograph, most especially while you're learning. Choose a concept you understand well and work with it for a while. Try taking several rolls of film or filling a few hundred megs of compact flash cards with images following that rule. When you think you've got it down, move onto another one. When you've got a few of them down, try to break them deliberately and see what you come up with.

Rule of Thirds

The rule of thirds divides the frame into a tic-tac-toe grid. The intersections of the grid lines are the strongest areas of focus, and are often referred to as power points. This is a concept that goes all the way back to the artwork of the ancient Egyptians. Somehow they figured out that if there is something distinct in one or more of those locations the eye will go straight to it and then wander through the photo looking for more. The exact science behind it isn't important, just know that this method is proven to work.

One Central Point of Interest

This is the rule I have always had the most trouble with, and it is my favorite rule to break. Why, you ask? For the challenge of it of course! This is the one rule that I have found to be the toughest to break without getting "scolded" by my fellow photographers. Even when it works, the shot is criticized for lack of one central point of interest. So, being the rebel that I am, I have made it my mission in life to come up with photographs that break this rule and still garner raves from fellow photographers. I am constantly asking myself, "Why can't an entire scene be the focal point? Why can't photographers get past this rule?" Any technically perfect photograph that even comes close to approaching the rules of composition will often awe the non-photographer. But photographers (myself included) tend to get really hung up on the rules and have a hard time just enjoying a beautiful photograph without picking it apart.

While you’re learning the ropes, try to find one central point of interest and place it in a power point, or fill the majority of the frame with it. Yes I said earlier to concentrate on one rule, but this will be an exception. In everything there are exceptions.

Don't Center the Subject

This is the rule, in my humble opinion, that most distinguishes an artistic photo from a snapshot. The natural human tendency is to point the camera straight at the main subject and fire away. However, this is also the rule that is the easiest to recognize as breakable in any given situation. If the subject fills the majority of the frame, it can very likely be centered without a problem.

Leave room for an animal to move across the frame, or a place for the animal to look. This goes for the human animal as well. Leave room for a plant to grow or sway in the wind, or just leave room so that the subject doesn't look cramped or crammed into the frame. Provide a little context or complimentary scenery to one side or above or below or all of the above.

No Distractions

Another rule I have a tough time with is to avoid distracting elements in the scene. When your composing your shot in the viewfinder, try to keep things out of the image that might distract the viewer away from the main subject. A bright spot in the background, a stray branch poking into the frame, the fender of the car parked next to you, a kiosk at the view point or overlook, just to name a few things that can insert confusion or distraction into the image.

The Magic Hour

Mid-day sun will generally blow out most of the detail in the landscape. Shadows are almost nonexistent. Without shadows it becomes much more difficult to show texture, and depth. Colors are also much more muted in direct vertical sunlight. True daylight doesn’t have a lot of color. When the sun has to pass through more of the atmosphere it takes on more color from dust, and other particles suspended in the air.

The best light is generally 30 minutes on each side of sunrise and 30 minutes on each side of sunset. This is when the light takes on a warm glow. Reds, yellows, oranges, all combine to create a “magic” quality of light that you don’t see the rest of the day. You can usually squeeze another hour or two out of the morning and evening if you choose your subjects carefully and depending a bit on the season. I am usually shooting for an hour before sunrise and an hour after sunset, but I usually don’t get anything special during those extra 30 minutes.

I have lived my entire life north of the 45^th parallel, in Oregon and Washington. Up here during the winter months, the sun stays relatively low in the sky all day so I can generally get good results most of the day. Between 11:00a.m. and 1 p.m. is usually pushing the envelope, but if it’s a very cold day – below freezing - there is a special crisp quality to that mid-day sun that you don’t get in the southern most portions of the northern hemisphere.

Overcast and rainy days are excellent opportunities to shoot. Rain saturates the colors on anything it dampens. It washes the dust and pollution out of the air. And don’t forget rain makes the mushrooms grow! Cloudy skies give you a nice even diffused light that is excellent for waterfalls, macro photography of flowers, and much more.

Illustration of the Rule of Thirds

Below, I’ve included three versions of the same photograph. This is Portland, Oregon from the east bank of the Willamette River. This was taken just before sunrise December 26, 2004. I was on a group outing with Pacific Northwest Nature Photographers, and we were trying to get shots of the moon at sunrise, with moon detail. But that’s a subject for another article. Let’s move on to our illustration.

Photo 1 has the moon centered in the frame. Photo 2 has the moon in the upper right power point, and the top of a tall building in the upper left power point. Photo 3 is the full frame image as it was composed in the camera. Note that although the moon is not precisely in a power point, it is close enough to pull the viewer’s attention.

Photo 1 – moon is centered:

Photo 2 – moon and tall building placed at power points:

Photo 3 – full frame image:

Conclusion

I’ve given you a sampling, of compositional guidelines that you can follow to make vast improvements in your photography. These are what I consider to be the most crucial compositional guidelines. Work on these things until they are second nature, and then start trying to break the rules to develop your own style and vision. Then you will no longer be just another skilled photographer; you’ll be an artist.

Extended Reading

I don’t pretend to be the foremost authority on photography, so I’ve gotten you a great start, now you need to go put these guidelines to practice and while you’re at it, I highly recommend a series of very in-depth articles on composition by Alain Broit. This is a series of 9 articles that takes you deep into Alain’s method of composing a photograph. I’m roughly half way through it and have learned a tremendous amount already. Click here to go to the page containing the links to the series. Scroll down to “Aesthetics and Photography: A Nine Part Tutorial Series”

Keep checking back here at photofirm.com for step-by-step tutorials on subjects from setting exposure to adjusting your images in Photoshop. Take lots of pictures and don’t be afraid to experiment!