Settling on the right digital camera in today's market is difficult enough, but using your new equipment to its maximum potential is a difficult task. In the convoluted forest of preposterous marketing hype, manufacturers aim to make you believe that the camera you just bought will crank out Ansel Adams grade images by just shooting in the latest Auto mode. Technology has come a long way, but we still feel that a keen eye and adequate knowledge in the field of photography is omnipotent, and something that technology will never be able to touch. The way you frame a shot, angle a scene, play with lighting, and utilize depth can make a prodigious difference in your shooting, so today we're going to give you some tips on how to compose a shot.
Rule of Thirds
We'll start with a textbook method—the magical Rule of Thirds. What is it about a fantastic nature shot that really tickles your Elmo? It's not the serene trees and placid water and ethereal sky—it's a combination of all three, and how they are composed. Most landscape shots can be divided into three horizontal panes. Here's an example we shot with the Casio Exilim EX-FH100.
Here we have sky on top, water/reflection in the middle, and grass on the bottom. A compositional nature sandwich. Another example of the Rule of Thirds can be seen here in this shot taken with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G10.
Perspective
Anyone can shoot a scene or subject straight on, but how you angle the camera can have a dramatic effect on the mood you're trying to convey. Position the camera near the ground and pointing upward to make a subject appear larger and more powerful. Here's an example taken with the Canon EOS 5D Mark II.
The opposite effect can be achieved by standing high above a subject and shooting downward, which makes the subject appear less powerful. This shot taken by the Samsung TL210 makes Big Green look like a Power Wheels compared to the yellow Suzuki TL above.
Portraits
The face is the money when it comes to taking portraits, so no matter what the cost, your main task is making sure that the subject's face is the centerpiece. When you initially look at a decent portrait, your eyes should snap to the subject's face like a magnet within a matter of seconds. Framing is important, making sure head space (the area between the top of the image frame and the top of the subject's head) is kept to a minimum. We shot Claudia with the Olympus E-620 using a soft focus, but her face is what vacuums us in immediately because it's focused properly and lit correctly.
Emotion is the engine that drives the face, and your image needs to tell a story or invoke a certain feeling, whether it's sex appeal, tragedy, fantasy, or comedy to name a few. When an image is strong enough emotionally, it can override certain old school rules, as exhibited in this picture of Vinnie on the verge of getting a pizza spatula to the jugular, manned by Mario. We took this with the Nikon D5000 and it was tough to settle on just one image after a photoshoot with these wise guys.
Stay tuned for more infoSync Photography tips, and feel free to request more tutorials by sending feedback.
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