Digital Photographer - UK (2020-05)

Alterthecomposition

fordifferentresults

Frame

5 smart

Whenframinga shot,considerhowyou’re

usingrepetitiveelements,leadinglines,

negativespaceandtheclassicruleofthirds.

Thecompositionneedstosuitthesubject– its

shape,size,texture– andthemoodyouwant

toconvey.Forexample,placingelementsin

thecentreoftheframecancreatea senseof

simplicity,harmonyandbalance.

Someframescanbecompletelypared

downtoincludejustoneelement(suchasthe

eggsontheright),whereasmorecomplicated

lifestyleimagesmightneedtojuxtaposemany

differentdishes,foods,platesandprops.

Aswellasdecidingwheretoplacethemain

subject,considertheamountofspacearound

eachitemandthepurposeofyourshot.Leave

negativespaceintheframeif youknowyour

imageisgoingtohavetextoverlaid– suchas

forrecipesandmagazines– orfilltheframe

forstandaloneimageswithmaximumimpact.

Below

Considerthepurpose

Effectiveuseofnegativespace

willmakea photosuitableforuse

alongsidetext,forinstancein

magazinesorrecipes

Above

Creatingharmony

A simple,stripped-backscene with

a centralsubjectandsoft,neutral

colourscreatesa calm,balanced

moodin thephoto

Below

Fill up

Fill the frame with your subject to

focus closely on small details and

create high-impact, standalone

food shots

3x

©

Esther

Ling

Central subject

Negativespace Fill the frame

TECHNIQUES