Monday, May 3- Wed, May 5: understanding the basics of photo composition

 

Learning targets:

I can respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives; synthesize comments, claims, and evidence made on all sides of an issue;

I can propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that probe reasoning and evidence.

I can integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media .

I can present information, findings, and supporting evidence, conveying a clear and distinct perspective.

I can analyze nuances in the meaning of words (images) with similar denotations. 

I can make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest. 

I can adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks.

Essentials for taking a good photo

Assignment: 

1.Take your time and follow along with the readings,understanding  and reflecting upon the image samples for the rule of thirds, phi grid and Fibonacci spiral. (you are responsible for understanding these terms!)

2. At the conclusion of the reading, there is a short video that will support the reading. I suggest that your review the reading, after  having watched the video.

3. Application of what you have learned: there are ten images that follow. For each decide on the compositional technique that is used and support your reasoning with specifics from the image that clearly demonstrates you understand the how the photo was organized. 

DUE BY MIDNIGHT Wednesday.

SO you want to take a good photo!

1. Think about your shots

Whether that’s physically looking at a sweeping view in front of you or visualizing an image in your head, this is the point when you should start asking yourself questions.

What has drawn you to this image? Why do you want to capture it? And what is it that you hope to achieve?

                                 

                                 

                                                     

Photography starts with composition. How you frame a scene is the basic building block of taking a good picture.

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The Rule of Thirds is the first (and only) compositional rule that most photographers learn and it’s not without a reason; it’s relatively easy to understand and it can instantly make your photography more visually pleasing. 

The Rule of Thirds and other compositional rules are guidelines and techniques that will help you in creating better photographs. The principle of it is to break the image into thirds, both horizontally and vertically, leaving you with 9 frames. These frames serve as guidelines as to where you should place subjects of interest in your image, either at the intersections or along the lines.

In other words, the main subject (or a point of interest) in your image should be placed at the intersections between the frames. This is at the lower or upper right or left intersections. By placing the elements at these spots, you’re creating a more visually pleasing image that naturally helps guide the viewer’s eye.

Note that your cameras usually have a grid to organize your photo.

Here are a couple more image where the Rule of Thirds has been used:

The Phi Grid and the Fibonacci Spiral

or Fibonacci Spiral

Every individual who has some basic ideas about the fundamentals of photography will be aware of the concept of the ‘Rule Of Thirds’. It simply employs a technique that involves the incorporation of human psychology and visual balance, thereby enhancing the quality of a picture compositionally. Gridlines divide the frame into three sections, the thumb rule being that the content to be captured should coincide with the intersecting lines of the first rectangle. This ensures that the focus is brought to the composition of the picture, making it a success with photographers!

However, it’s been long disputed whether this technique is effective or should be replaced by that employing the ‘Golden Ratio’- a unique ratio that seems to be followed by most, if not all elements of nature. It was discovered by dividing successive numbers of the Fibonacci Series, the ratio converging to a number of 1.618. Early references to the same can be obtained in the works of Da Vinci, notably, ‘The Vitruvian Man’*- revolutionizing Mathematics of the Modern Era. 

Application In Photography:

The spiral that is generated via the golden ratio is simply juxtaposed over the photograph, creating a grid commonly known as the ‘Phi Grid’. The image to be showcased should overlap with the intersecting lines of the first section of this grid, thereby creating a strong visual composition.

The arguments have been that since this spiral is obtained via the golden ratio, one that is hardwired in humans as a sense of aesthetics and beauty, is a better method to form picture compositions. In landscape photography, this method seems to be highly effective due to the fact that it tends to make the photograph look more natural, it’s counterpart tending to impart a more obvious and one-dimensional balance to the composition.

Please watch this short video (4 minutes) to further understand 

Fibonacci Spiral

                  1.

                                                                 2

                                                   



                                                                   3.

                                                                     4.

                                                                 5.

                                                                           6.

                                                                      7.

                                                                   8

                                                                 

  9.

10.

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Why do the Carters look so tiny alongside Joe Biden and his wife Jill in this picture?

You don’t need special gear to create this optical trickery. If you have an iPhone 11 or 12 you too can loom large over a former US president

Not a doll’s house: US president Joe Biden and his wife Jill visit Jimmy Carter and wife Rosalynn. Photograph: The Carter Centre

Hi Carly. As our resident photography expert, I have a question. Something about this photo featuring Joe and Jill Biden and former president Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter seems … off?

It sure does. Where to begin … The scale of Biden v Rosalynn is very unusual – he looks three times the size of her and even though the natural physical changes during old age may be playing a role here, I don’t think ageing shrinks you that much. Also, the scale of Jimmy Carter’s feet compared to the rest of his body is weird – sort of like a reverse statue of David. Finally, notice the lounge chairs, they look like they are from a doll’s house. That seems unlikely.

So the Bidens are not, in reality, about three times bigger than the Carters?

No, they aren’t. I’m sure Joe Biden is quite a bit taller than Rosalynn, but not by that much. The image is possibly distorted by using a wide-angle lens. When taking photos in a smaller space you often don’t have room to move far enough back to get everyone in the frame, so you use a lens that can take it all in. Unfortunately, if you use a lens that is really wide, while also standing very close to the subjects, it will distort the photo, making those close to the camera appear giant while shrinking those further away.

The opposite happens when you use a zoom lens, it will compress the space, making subjects in the image appear closer together. Like the image below.

A composite showing two shots of Bondi beach, the left-hand side is taken with a 400mm lens and the right-hand side is a 28mm lens. Photograph: Carly Earl/The Guardian

So those people aren’t all packed together at Bondi beach?

No, they aren’t. As you can see, the image on the right shows a pretty sparse beach in comparison with the one on the left. The one on the right was shot with what’s called a standard lens which has a focal length of 28mm. The one on the left was shot with a zoom lens with a focal length of 200mm.

Right. Well, the highly unofficial website “Potus.com” tells me that Jimmy Carter is 177cm tall, making him only the 32nd tallest president. Joe Biden is only 5cm taller, at 182cm (equal 20th), so camera trickery must be at play here.

Are there any special settings or equipment that I could copy if I also wanted to take a photo where I looked uncommonly large next to a former president?

You don’t need special gear to create this optical trickery. If you have an iPhone 11 or 12 you actually can use the wide-angle setting in the camera on the phone to capture a wider field of view. So just ask whatever former president you encounter to step back slightly, then get yourself in front, and snap.

If you’ve got a professional camera with interchangeable lenses, you can get an even more dramatic result. If you use a lens with a focal length of say 10-15mm, you can make yourself loom over a Potus (or their friends and family members).

Amazing. I’m going to find George W Bush and make him look like a very small child. Where does this stand in the pantheon of great trick photos?

Well, for inspiration, you can’t go past this iconic photo of then-New Zealand prime minister John Key shaking hands with All Blacks forward Sam Whitelock.

Former New Zealand prime minister John Key congratulates Samuel Whitelock after the 2015 Rugby World Cup semifinal match between South Africa and New Zealand in London. Photograph: Phil Walter/Getty Images

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Getty photographer Phil Walter used a 16mm lens for that one, combined with a low position, and, like the Bidens and the Carters, was in a small-ish room.

For an Australian version, here’s former opposition leader Bill Shorten with a mullet.And who could forget this 2016 photo of a night out in Manchester that had the composition and density of a Renaissance painting – complete with the golden ratio.