Composition: Part II

Look at the three photos below. Because of the placement of the bird in the frame as well as the format, each one tells a different story. In the first one, the bird itself is the subject. The frame matches the shape of the bird. In the second photo, there seems to be no direct relationship to the shape of the bird and the photographer's choice of frame shape. The poor bird seems squashed into the frame. The only relative theme here maybe to show the bird's habitat. In that case, the bird is not the subject, the habitat is the subject. In the third image, the bird is again the subject but the theme has changed. Is the bird ready to fly away? Has it sensed the photographer's presence? We don't know, but because of the placement in the frame we can assume that the photographer used a horizontal format and left one-third of the frame blank for a very good reason.

Learn to use frame shape as an important tool in composition. Look for examples in magazines and try to understand when and why to use different views. If you notice, magazines favor the vertical format. Why? Because it cuts down on wasted space. Most often, only true landscapes will be used in the horizontal format. Is that always the case? No, but it is the most common.

It is important to pay attention to the shape of the actual subject when choosing the frame shape. Not only will your shots look better, they will start to look more professional.

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In Composition: Part III, we will be covering perspective and in-camera cropping.

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Future articles:

Composition: Part IV Isolating the Subject

Composition: Part V Shape as the Subject

Composition: Part VI Light as the Subject

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