Vacation Photography

Don’t travel without taking a camera with you. How you see the scene determines how good your scenic shots will be. You could be delighted by the results.

Shooting What You See

Sometimes you might have taken a photo that looked good in real life but didn’t look so great on the computer. Maybe the focal length of the lens you used was the reason for this. Your eye sees through an arc of 40 degrees. Viewing a general scene like a skyline is a way to test this for yourself. Note the elements of the scene keeping your eyes aimed straight ahead. Examine the scene now as it appears through the viewfinder. Notice how some scenic elements are excluded now, or some are now perhaps included. By zooming the lens back to around 40 degrees you’ll get the same framing as your eye. Trial and error will allow you to work this out until you’ve established which zoom setting will give the same as the view through your eyes.

Composition

Composition is the art of ‘framing’ the photograph or arranging the elements so that it draws the viewer’s eye to what you want seen or noticed. Here are some basic rules of composition:

1. The Eye Scans Diagonally

The eye usually scans automatically from bottom right of a picture diagonally across to the top left. You can get some idea of this by taking any picture you have in your files and flipping it horizontally with your photo editing software. The balance of the picture changes when you flip it with some becoming more prominent one way but not the other. Taking portrait photos is one place where this rule can be used to good effect.

You should pose your model turned slightly away from the camera. Direct him to make loose fists and rest his hands on his legs. Keeping his body in that pose, get him to look at you by moving his head. This is a head to knees pose. View the image through the camera. Notice that your eye looks first at the hands and they guide it to the subject’s face. Take this photo, and then flip it in the computer using photo editing software. What version looks best?

Here’s an exercise you can do: look over a photography website or through a book to see the rule in action. You may discover that a shape, color, or line has been employed by the photographer as a guiding element to direct the eye to the subject in the middle of the composition. Occasionally a photographer will achieve a startling effect by breaking this rule.

2. Frame the Photograph

The edges of a photograph are like the fence around a house. They define the space. Mount one of your pictures in a frame and you’ll see this effect. Now the picture and its contents are better defined. You can make deliberate use of this using trees or doorways. If you place the subject before a featureless or neutral background you can achieve a contrasting effect. Without any other elements in the picture, the eye is automatically drawn to the person.

Shooting so as to include the background adds to the mood or feel of the final image. Sometimes the background can be cluttered, or includes strong shapes that overwhelm the subject. Best avoid these. However, generally speaking, by including enough of the background you can contribute to the telling of the visual story. Frame your scene so the end result provides answers to these simple questions
This is what location?
Who this is?
Why are they where they are?
What activity are they engaged in?

The Rule of Thirds

This rule divides the image into thirds horizontally and/or vertically. The subject should occupy the central third. Or put at the locations where the two grids intersect. In a landscape the top third is the sky, the middle third is the subject. The last third comprises the foreground which supports the subject.

Most portraits are composed vertically, half to three quarter length. Imagine three horizontal lines dividing the frame from top to bottom; the face is at the juncture of the top two lines. This permits some ‘space’ above the head and makes it easier to view. And this is a more balanced composition with the space either side of the subject.

If you’d like a mood of intensity, try some extreme close ups.

In photography, the more you shoot the better you get. Take lots of photos and analyze the ones you like – and the ones you don’t like. Expect to learn the basics of this rewarding hobby quite quickly.