Part One - Guidelines for Good Composition
by Chuck Gardner
4) Make your center of interest the brightest object the frame:
 The viewer's eye will be instinctively
drawn to the brightest area of a low key (i.e., dark background / light subject)
photograph. If the center of interest is not the brightest object in the frame
it will take longer for it to be noticed. This photo above was taken during a an
unplanned trip, which BTW why I always take my digital camera along when I go
out. No consideration was given to clothing, and unfortunately though the setting and lighting (not to
mention the subject) are great, the bright white tone of the shirt really
competes for attention with the face, which should be the brightest object in
the frame.
 Toning down the shirt in PhotoShop helps, but idealy the subject should have been wearing a darker, neutral shirt. It's interesting to note that camera position was about 8 feet lower than the subject and 20 feet away. Because I was lower, I asked the subject to bend forward at the waist at a 30 degree angle. That matched the upward angle of the camera, which makes her appear to be sitting straight. I was so far away because I wanted to use a longer focal length so the legs which are closer to the camera would not be out of proportion. Fill flash was used but was not very effective at that distance. Click here to view the original unedited file Goto Next Page > Goto < Previous Page Goto Class Outline Goto super.nova.org my home page. |