Composition Exercise Pt. 2
Here's a great little exercise that'll stretch your creative muscle and help you improve your composition. There's only one rule - no zooming!
Using a set focal length for all your compositions means you have to use the best zoom in photography - your feet!
If you want to change the size of something in the viewfinder you’ll have to move yourself closer or further away. You’ll have to bend down, get on your knees or walk up the road. Not things usually associated with composition.
If you're out on a dull day like I was you'll have to think about light and find what's appropriate for the image you're going to take. Smaller close ups are usually best in these conditions and finding good light for the subject is important.
The main benefit is in looking, seeing the composition in your head and visualising it as a 50mm image is that you have to work a bit harder to make it eye catching. 50mm is about how we see the world with our eyes. The benefit of this composition exercise is that 50mm isn't that remarkable whereas a long or short lens would have more impact because three things change according to the focal length you're using.
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Scene in a scene |
Landscape photography is one of those areas where patience, thinking it through and taking your time pays dividends. We have all seen a scene we want to capture but sadly we’re in a hurry, so we leap out the car and just grab a shot without giving it too much thought.
This may or may not result in a great shot. But have you thought to ask yourself if there’s more to be had from a location than the obvious? You have to build upon an initial idea. Explore possibilities.
I was in Vietnam driving through the mountains when we came upon this amazing view of rice terraces. We stopped so the film crew could shoot some aerial shots with their drone so Simon and I took the opportunity to look around and shoot this video.
As we drove up the hill I’d noticed one of the little paths that wind their way through the paddies so we went for a walk to see what it would yield.
Almost straight away we came upon some greenery we could use as foreground, which can frame a scene and give it more depth. In some cases just finding a bit of foreground can make or break an image.
But don’t forget to look around you. It’s all to easy to miss a beautiful detail of the landscape that’s right next to you because you’re absorbed by what’s in front.
You have to concentrate and really look at a scene. In the first shot of the last scenario there’s a stick poking up on the left. I didn’t really notice it to begin with. It wasn’t until I checked the shot in the LCD it became apparent.
So how do we remove it? Well obviously there’s Photoshop but I’m lazy. A few steps to the side will change the geometry of the image. It makes things align differently so you can lose unwanted clutter from the composition.
So besides making sure the light is appropriate for the scene, here are 3 landscape photography tips to consider.
- Take time – think of other possibilities for the location
- Find some foreground. It could make a world of difference
- Look to the side as well as in front. You might have missed something
These things are not functions of your camera. They are functions of you thinking like a photographer.
