As you may guess, I am not a fan of rules, and the question I often ask is, "Who made the rules, and why do they think they can tell me what to think?" In fact, I may get a T-shirt made that says in large letters, "Screw the rules and screw the horse they came on!" So there, I've said it. And if that sets your teeth on edge... just read on!
Seriously, though, who wrote the so-called “rules of composition,” and why should I treat them like they are the holy grail that all art must attain? To quote one of my photographic heroes, Edward Weston: “Composition is a way of seeing, strong or weak according to the individual. If composition could be taught, anyone might become an artist. Rules of composition are derived from the work of strong masters and used by weak imitators to create nothing.”
As I browse the several photographic pages I subscribe to and walk through popular photographic galleries, I am struck by how much the photographs from the various “artists” look so much alike—almost like formula photographs. So many are so similar! So then, what do we need to do to separate our photographs from the pack? I don’t want to be a “weak imitator creating nothing.”
So then, if we ignore the “rules for fools,” as I call them, how do we know what a good composition looks like? My common reply is this: “Does it look good to you?” “Does it feel good to you?” “Does it say what you want it to say?” If it does those things, then I would posit that it’s a good composition.
A very great problem arises when we blindly follow arbitrary rules set up by someone else. At that point, we begin to lose our own voice and begin to use someone else’s. And frankly, when we lose our own voice and take on someone else’s, we lose the uniqueness that was placed within us at birth and become weak imitators. Imitation may be the highest form of flattery, but it is more often a bitter trap! Imitation may be a great learning tool when you are beginning, but at some point, you will have to seek your own voice, or you could easily lose it.
Now, academicians will start to come at you with all kinds of high, lofty-sounding words that may sound good and intellectual but are just a lot of blather since, most of the time, they don’t have a practical understanding of those things—where they came from and what their practical applications are. So, let me say this: be who you are compositionally. Explore, experiment, ask yourself the question, “What if…?”
A friend of mine, who is very well known as a black-and-white landscape photographer, once said to make your own photographs the way you like them. If someone says, “Why did you do that?” the answer is simple: “Because I liked it that way.” If one person asks and dissents, be confident in your vision. If a hundred people dissent, re-evaluate your vision.
Having said all that, here are some ideas that might help make a stronger composition for you.
1. Balance
Does your photograph feel balanced left and right, top and bottom? Most times, I personally prefer the horizon line to be either smartly above or below image center. But again, that is not universal, and sometimes I will put it almost in the vertical center of the canvas for impact’s sake. So, evaluate the balance of your image.
2, Rhythm and Direction
Is there a rhythm and direction to your photograph? Musical rhythm may be the best analogy I can make. Rhythm can be a valuable tool to create mood. For instance, Allegro in D Major, K. 626b/16 by Mozart gives a light and airy emotional response, while Beethoven’s Fifth is bold, ponderous, and heavy, and Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by Bach evokes a response of darkness and dread. There are dozens of other examples, of course. So where on that continuum do you want your photograph to lie? What is the mood you want to evoke?
(By the way, this image is a good illustration of using the Scheimpflug principle. It was essential that the heads of grain in the foreground remain sharp despite a light breeze and needing to use an aperture of f/32. See my earlier article about Scheimpflug for more information.)
I used more than three compositional elements to make this image work. Those are balance, rhythm and direction, and texture. See what other composition elements you can find in it.
3. Texture
Never ignore texture. It is texture that gives your photographs a tactile feeling, and texture is revealed by light direction, intensity, and contrast, which I will address in a subsequent writing.
4. Space
Are you filling all the space in your photograph with interesting material? Do you want to have large open spaces in your photograph, like an open sky, for instance? Are you wanting to work a very dark area against a lighter area, or vice versa?
5. Exclusivity
That which is in the minority will always (almost always) get the most attention, as seen here.
6. Attraction
The human eye will usually gravitate to what is the lightest, brightest or in sharpest focus.
(As you can see, the Huge Cottonwood stands out, and is the most visible against the mountainside of darker trees behind it.)
7. Lines
A leading line can be used to direct the human eye through an image to what it is you want the viewer to see.
8. Camera Position
Always search for the camera position that will most effectively communicate what you’re trying to say. Pay attention to the horizon line: where do you want it to be? What’s more important to your image, the ground or the sky? Sometimes you will have to make a choice, so figure it out. Will it be better if you moved ten feet, or more, to one side or the other? Can you hide that annoying and ugly power pole behind a tree? Are there two or more objects that will blend into one in your photograph? I call these convergences, and they can be good or not good, depending on what you want to say.
9. Layers of Subject Material
I like to show layers of subject material in my photographs—foreground, mid-ground, and background. I have seen a large number of photographs with remarkable mountains and clouds, for instance, and a blank foreground, like over a lake. So, 2/3rds of the image is water, with no notable interest in it. A lesser crime, though still a problem, is when there is a very interesting foreground and mid-ground, but the background is vacant. I actually learned about this one from the country western singer Kenny Rogers. Many don't know that he was an accomplished photographer, doing excellent portrait work as well as landscape photography. For examples of his portrait work you might consider his excellent coffee table book, "Your Friends and Mine."
The background was interesting, especially when the clouds dropped down over the mountains in the short distance, visually isolating the isthmus of land into the lake. However, the foreground was blank, and blank = boring most of the time. The "Langmuir Spirals," which cause the areas of slick water, in the lake's foreground gave me something interesting to see in that area. Another element I have not discussed due to space is what I call atmospheric depth of field, where we use atmospheric elements to show what we want to, and add depth to our photograph.
10. If in Doubt, Crop It Out
Don't be afraid to crop out elements that are boring or that don't contribute to your story. (More on this in my next writing, so stay tuned.)
11. Watch Out for Intrusions Near the Borders
Sometimes even your most valiant efforts don't work, and you end up with an image that either makes no sense, or that just isn't quite what you want, or hoped for. Don't discard them ever, unless there is an obvious insurmountable issue, like being completely wrong on the exposure, and unrecoverably so, or being out of focus, and you'll know those things when you see them, either on your computer monitor or when it is proofed in your darkroom. And by the way, a tip for those of you that use film, never trust a photo lab's judgment, they are wrong more than they're right. I have completely given up on lab processing of film, especially black and white film.
Here is an example of an image I had high hopes for; however, in spite of all my valiant efforts, I am not getting what I hoped for originally. It may please others, but it has never been satisfying to me. Maybe it will be someday, but not yet.
The trick in all of this—compositional elements and considerations—and the qualifying equation is when all of these elements can be tied together and used to build a personally satisfying image.
The primary source of all of my expendable supplies like Kodak T-Max 100 is B&H. Good people that do things the right way. See them here.
