This assignment asks you to take a number of pictures (approx. 50) and to print your best (approx. 5-8). The emphasis here is again on camera work and strategic cropping in the darkroom. The theory of camera work is discussed in Basic Camera Operation. The definitive treatment on camera work is found in Ansel Adams' books, The Camera and The Negative. (See the bibliography.)
Basic Approach
Composition in photography is no different from composition in traditional graphic and plastic arts. One of the very best ways to learn composition is to view art works frequently and to recognize what interests you as well as to interpret how the artist put the pieces together. Visit galleries and page through portfolios. Read what artists say about their work.
Composing a photographic image means deciding what should go into the image and how different factors of the image should be arranged and weighted. There are some classic rules of composition, such as the rule of thirds (dividing both the vertical and horizontal space more-or-less equally in thirds and placing important objects in one or more of the four nodes), but their use should be varied depending on subject and inclination.
In this assignment, you should explore a variety of subjects with which you are comfortable and concentrate on the options you have in camera placement and the resulting ways that composition becomes expressive. Images should demonstrate balance and reveal relationships of different kinds. When you examine an image in a critique session, you will naturally ask, "What is the subject of this picture?" You should learn to ask yourself this same question when you examine your own images. "Why did I take this picture?" "What is the subject?" "What did I want to express about this subject?" In time, you should discipline yourself to ask this question in the field with your camera in hand and before the image is created. Adams encourages us to be patient and to take enough time in the field so that we can not only decide what the subject is but, then, move about and position the camera to make the composition work with the subject. Composition starts here. [It is tempting, with modern 35 mm SLR cameras, to just shoot pictures. When the negatives are processed and the proof sheet is in hand, you can decide what was good and what was trash. Sometimes, in fact, this is the best response to a situation in which there's little time for study and setup. But fine art photography demands more time and more consideration of subject, when at all possible.]
A good way to pursue this assignment is to select an object that will become your "subject" and then take a number of photographs that compose your subject in different ways. What other objects do you want to include in the image? How do they help to focus attention on the subject? Etc.
Perhaps what I want to create is a picture of a reflection in a window. The window is on the side of a house. Do I take a picture of the house? Later on, I will say, "I was taking a picture of that reflection." How do I compose the image so that the subject clearly is the reflection? Are there ways of including objects so as to "draw" a natural line to the reflection?
It is always tempting to place your "subject" in the very middle of the image but doing so may completely cut it off from the other elements and may not express what you want to communicate about it. You need to understand and express the relationships between the important elements of the image. Experiment with different techniques for making objects relate to each other and guide the viewer's eyes to the subject. But keep the image simple!
Updated on March 8, 2002; click here to return to Course HomePage.