Tips and Tricks by Angie Rethwisch
The first time I heard the word "Composition" was in Mrs. Jensen's English Class. She led with an iron fist and hammered into our heads that a composition or story needs to have a beginning, middle and an end. Flash forward 15 years, many research papers and a thesis later, I found myself again immersed in that "Composition" word. This time it was through the art of photography.
When I first began snapping pictures of my babies I captured how cute they were doing things! Sometimes though I would accidentally capture an image that really spoke to me. As it turns out I was unknowingly learning the art of composition.
I quickly learned about the rule of thirds, the golden spiral, triangles, leading lines and how they enhance storytelling in my images. I believe that composition can make or break the most famous of images. After taking thousands of pictures I find what I enjoy most is turning that ugly duckling image into a beautiful swan just with a few adjustments here and there. Good composition can convey your image's story and give it that beginning, middle and end. Let's get into some of my Dos and Don'ts of composition.
Do - Use leading lines to draw your viewer's eye to your subject. The image above has great leading lines that draw you straight to the subject.
Don't - Let lines intersect through your subject's head or awkwardly through their body. Watch for horizons, windowsills, or other lines shooting straight through the subject's head. Avoid this by changing your perspective and shoot from above or below your subject. The image below is an example of a horizon going through my subject's head. Also watch watch is behind your subject such as trees or other objects so they don't look like they are coming out of their head. Get comfortable with using that clone tool my friends!
Do - Get creative with crops and crop correctly through body parts. This crop works because it's above and not right at the elbow.
Don't - Limb Chop. I absolutely love this picture of my little guy, but his hands are cut off. To make this more appealing, I could tighten the crop to get just the flower and his little face in the image.
The below image is a great diagram to refer to when chopping limbs. The green lines show you where it is most pleasing to crop your subject. The red lines are where it is not pleasing.
Do - Use layering to enhance your compositions. This is one of my favorite ways to make my images more creative and draw in my viewer!
Here I used fog from a fog machine to draw attention to the light on my son's toes.
Using layers with palm leaves and then creating a double exposure creates a unique composition with depth and texture.
Do - Use symmetry to create the unexpected.
Do - Clear the clutter! Before you shoot look around and see if you can remove the distracting elements in the frame. If you had to quick get the shot and did not have time to clear the clutter, try using your cloning tool or bring down the shadows to cover up anything that may be distracting.
In the below image I brought down the shadows and used my brush to darken around the table to cover up what was on the floor.
Here I used the shadows and light to create leading lines to my subject as well as covering up the clutter in my living room.
Go out and have fun!
I absolutely love composition! I challenge you to use some of these techniques to add artistry to your images. Don't overthink it. Step back and take your time to develop the story in your head that you want to tell in your image. Shoot wide so that you always have the ability to crop down. The bottom line is to go out and have fun while creating your own magic!
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