An Introduction To Photography

In this blog, I shall be discussing the Photography Unit & the different types of composition there is within the subject of photography.

Composition is when is the key to good photographs yet is something that is hard to produce. A definition of composition is the placement or arrangement of things we see or in a photograph. 


The different types of composition I shall be discussing are Perspective, Aperture & Shutter, Shapes, Forms & Lines, Abstract, Fill The Frame & Lead In Lines.


I shall also be showing pictures taken for a Client Portfolio which was used for a book advertising Britain to tourists. 

Perspective

Perspective is when the camera is used in a creative way to take photographs of a humorous nature, or to create an illusion through the image.


The reason perspective is used is to take images to be viewed in a different way by the eye. It's out of the ordinary & jumps out at us when we see it.


Here are three examples of perspective. 

This is an image of a weird angle perspective. The Angle of the gap in the trunk of a cut down tree causes interest as well as a leading line which draws the viewer into the photo.

This image shows the illusion of perspective. To a normal eye it looks like Michael in the background is poking Shelby in the foreground in the eye. However the two are apart & the camera has created this illusion.

This is a foreground perspective. This is shown by the image. Even though Michael is of key interest in the background the main focus is in the foreground where we can clearly see Michael's clenched fist.

Aperture & Shutter

Aperture is linked to the speed of the shutter. Smaller f numbers means a faster shutter is required therefore meaning that higher f numbers require a slower shutter speed to let in more light.


Calculated as f stops f22 = full Depth of Field
f1.4/2.8 = shallow DOF


The faster the shutter speed the more action is frozen. The counter action to this is that to capture movement or record action you need a slower shutter speed. This can be various types of seconds. Panning with a fast shutter keeps a sharp focus for a better image but this leaves the background blurred. This means that you can not use a shutter that is less than your lens length without the use of a tripod otherwise your pictures will come out blurred.


ISO measures how sensitive the light is on the sensor. On bright days you should use low numbers & for higher numbers for when it is dark outside. There is more grain when the ISO is larger.


Here are a example of aperture, shutter & ISO:

Client Portfolio

I am a freelance photographer & I am producing a book about Britian. I am going to document life in Britain, Saltaire is just of many place I am photographing. I am required to produce 8 photos.


The pictures show below, document our problems with littering, education, sexual health & terrible roads as well as showing our proud heritage within the World Heritage Site.

Shapes, Form & Lines

Shapes and lines are elements in photography. When used quite well, shapes and lines can create as good looking effect. Photographers usually can have the control over ways shapes and lines are used in pictures.


Shapes are key to composition and is usually how the person looking finds an object in the photograph. Form is when a shape is 3D. A shape is only 2D, however with the right lighting you can bring it up to 3D therefore making it . Lighting can also turn 3D form into 2D shape when the lighting is bad.


Lines can be effective in composition, because they give interest to a photo. Lines can are important because they can bring a picture together & also attract the viewers eye. They can draw your eyes into a picture & also help a picture become more effective. Lines can also add depth to a picture. 


Here is a example:

 Shape is the key element & is shown by the shed just peeping out of the bushes. This attracts the viewer & adds interest to the photo.

Form is shown by the 3D Shed in the background. The lighting makes the shed keeps it 3D form & makes it better to look at & more interesting for the viewer.

Lines are clearly demonstrated by the path. It runs down the middle of the picture bringing the picture together as one & is also a leading line as your eye is drawn down the path from the foreground of the photo to the background.

Abstract

Abstract is usually when you've got extremely close to an object you can't identify it. This is usually down to taking the picture at a strange angle to a normal picture which leads to a very dramatic photographs.


It doesn't show the object of interest in a direct way to which a non abstract photograph would. It shows the picture not as an image but through the colour & light picked up by the camera. 


Here is an example: 


This picture shows abstract photography as the background noise & colours are the main focus of interest rather than the drop of water from the tap itself. 

Fill the Frame

Fill the frame is when the whole subject of the photograph is a key point of interest in a picture to fill the frame & make it a more interesting picture. This adds a wow factor to your photos.

This technique is used to add more features to a person as the focus is more on them rather than when the picture is zoomed out & has no focus. 

If you take a picture of a person you have to make sure there is minimal background noise & depth of field because this takes the focus & interest off the person in the photo & onto the background noise & the person may as well not be there.

The way to fill a frame is to zoom in rather than zoom out to have more focus & more detail on the main object within the picture.

Here is an example:

This photography is a perfect example of fill the frame. It zooms in on the key point of interest in the photograph which is the tennis player. Her hitting in the ball with the camera zoomed in adds a wow factor to the picture & makes it more interesting. It has a low depth of field & no background noise which makes the full focus of the picture on the person  & makes it a very good fill the frame picture.