Frank Wang

A Crash Course in Photographic Composition

Hi Steve,How are the pictures coming along?Just in case you didn't see my comments from 2 weeks ago, here they are again:Very nice first set, Steve. I especially like the contrast between the motorbike and the car in the facade - it tells a story, though I'm not sure what kind!As with Jeffrey's project, make sure you have titles and plenty of whitespace between your photos - they deserve our attention, so let them breathe.#1 is a good first attempt at the RoT with the trunk on the left separating the image nicely. In terms of lighting, you ran into problems though - trees and strong sun are notorious for patchy light which is a challenge even for the best camera sensor because you have both very dark and very bright spots competing with each other. Try to either have uniform shade or sun, but mixing them rarely works well.#2 has a very cool subject is that a kite? Or a falcon? It looks like you were using a compact camera at 10x optical zoom, which gives you lots of reach but messes with your detail. You've also got the tree problem again as above.Birding (along with sports photography) are VERY expensive hobbies, as those teles cost the big $$. In terms of composition, I would crop out the clotheslines - they're bright and distract. Try to get the bird in one of the intersecting points.#3 is the top shot IMO - it's awesome. The guy looks so relaxed, as if riding like that was the most normal thing in the world. Personally, I'd crop out the top lines to clean the image up, otherwise it's gold.#4 is also great, but there's quite a bit going on in the image - the stuff on the left is a bit distracting, though it's hard not to get that in Indo ;)Abigail is cute as a button (though I'm not sure if the bird agrees) - it's a bummer the focus is on the wire rather than her (or the bird for that matter). Close down your aperture if you can (f/11 or higher) to ensure everything is in focus. Also, the bright area on the left is distracting - I'd crop that bit out to bring attention to our main stars, like so:<a class="url" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/jhuyzc847vmltqq/314a42f8.jpg" rel="external nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.dropbox.com/s/jhuyzc847vmltqq/314a42f8.jpg</a>Keep it up, Steve, and don't be afraid to crop and repost.Cheers,Guido

Hi Guido, Thanks for your email, unfortunately I have had a medical problem with the vertebrae in my neck resulting in it virtually collapsing on itself. This has resulted in no activities for me so I will be unable to finish the projects for the course but will still read the syllabus and will still benefit from the experience Oh well better luck next time.RegardsSteve.Sent: Thursday, 2 May 2013 7:06 PM Hey Steve, Hi Steve,How are the pictures coming along?Just in case you didn't see my comments from 2 weeks ago, here they are again:Very nice first set, Steve. I especially like the contrast between the motorbike and the car in the facade - it tells a story, though I'm not sure what kind!As with Jeffrey's project, make sure you have titles and plenty of whitespace between your photos - they deserve our attention, so let them breathe.#1 is a good first attempt at the RoT with the trunk on the left separating the image nicely. In terms of lighting, you ran into problems though - trees and strong sun are notorious for patchy light which is a challenge even for the best camera sensor because you have both very dark and very bright spots competing with each other. Try to either have uniform shade or sun, but mixing them rarely works well.#2 has a very cool subject is that a kite? Or a falcon? It looks like you were using a compact camera at 10x optical zoom, which gives you lots of reach but messes with your detail. You've also got the tree problem again as above.Birding (along with sports photography) are VERY expensive hobbies, as those teles cost the big $$. In terms of composition, I would crop out the clotheslines - they're bright and distract. Try to get the bird in one of the intersecting points.#3 is the top shot IMO - it's awesome. The guy looks so relaxed, as if riding like that was the most normal thing in the world. Personally, I'd crop out the top lines to clean the image up, otherwise it's gold.#4 is also great, but there's quite a bit going on in the image - the stuff on the left is a bit distracting, though it's hard not to get that in Indo ;)Abigail is cute as a button (though I'm not sure if the bird agrees) - it's a bummer the focus is on the wire rather than her (or the bird for that matter). Close down your aperture if you can (f/11 or higher) to ensure everything is in focus. Also, the bright area on the left is distracting - I'd crop that bit out to bring attention to our main stars, like so:<a class="url" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/jhuyzc847vmltqq/314a42f8.jpg" rel="external nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.dropbox.com/s/jhuyzc847vmltqq/314a42f8.jpg</a> Keep it up, Steve, and don't be afraid to crop and repost.Cheers,GuidoReply Return the favor by leaving feedback on one of Guido’s projects. Final Compo	 To turn off this email, unfollow this project. Manage your email notification preferences here * Skillshare * 407 Broome St., New York, NY 10013

Holy crap - that doesn't sound good at all! Really sorry to hear that Steve! Is everything alright, all things considering? Don't worry about the timelines for the project - you can submit them a year late and I'll still comment. Hope you'll be feeling better and back shooting as soon as possible. Sorry again and a speedy recovery, Guido

Hi Steve, thanks for posting this first set! Comments are as follows:Boy with Ducks: I like the way attempted to divide the photo into thirds using the vertical of the tree. That said, that division in this case creates a visual barrier between the boy and the ducks he's interacting with. This is a terribly subtle point. When I see the boy's gaze over to the right, his sight light brings me right to the tree. So I guess what I'm trying to say is, good job with utilizing the concept to inform your composition, but in this case, the content may prevent that particular composition from being as strong as it could be. Bird of Prey: Great job using the rule of thirds to inform your composition here. I like that the subject is clear and identifiable, especially how the diagonal lines of the roof point your eye to the bird. I'd agree with Guido on the clotheslines however. You could crop those out and improve teh composition in two ways: It'd remove a distracting element as well as bring the bird closer to the bottom third of the image! Ducati: This is a fantastic photo, both for the content and the composition. The repeating diagonal lines of the road and barriers are a nice compositional element. I also like how the rider is clearly separated from the background in shape &amp; color. Finally, nice job putting him at the right third of the photo, leaving some "space" on the left 2/3rds for the bike to move into. No Parking: Great whimsical photo. I like the use of the post to divide the scene, as well as the placement of the red and blue sign. Abigail with Birds: I think Guido nailed on this image. Consider cropping in further to isolate your subjects (girl and bird). The left "third" of the frame doesn't add a whole lot to the scene. A tighter crop would bring more attention on both Abigail and the bird and would also crop out the brightest part of the image (upper left), which may distract the eye from your subject. Great start! Can't wait to see more. If you can, add titles to each image as well as a line break in between?

OK, now I can do formatting :) For some strange reasons, comments lose all attempts at paragraphing and just come out as a giant 'bleeurgh' of text whereas replies keep them...get your act together, Skillshare!Anyhoo - very nice first set, Steve. I especially like the contrast between the motorbike and the car in the facade - it tells a story, though I'm not sure what kind!As with Jeffrey's project, make sure you have titles and plenty of whitespace between your photos - they deserve our attention, so let them breathe. #1 is a good first attempt at the RoT with the trunk on the left separating the image nicely. In terms of lighting, you ran into problems though - trees and strong sun are notorious for patchy light which is a challenge even for the best camera sensor because you have both very dark and very bright spots competing with each other. Try to either have uniform shade or sun, but mixing them rarely works well.#2 has a very cool subject is that a kite? Or a falcon? It looks like you were using a compact camera at 10x optical zoom, which gives you lots of reach but messes with your detail. You've also got the tree problem again as above. Birding (along with sports photography) are VERY expensive hobbies, as those teles cost the big $$. In terms of composition, I would crop out the clotheslines - they're bright and distract. Try to get the bird in one of the intersecting points.#3 is the top shot IMO - it's awesome. The guy looks so relaxed, as if riding like that was the most normal thing in the world. Personally, I'd crop out the top lines to clean the image up, otherwise it's gold.#4 is also great, but there's quite a bit going on in the image - the stuff on the left is a bit distracting, though it's hard not to get that in Indo ;)Abigail is cute as a button (though I'm not sure if the bird agrees) - it's a bummer the focus is on the wire rather than her (or the bird for that matter). Close down your aperture if you can (f/11 or higher) to ensure everything is in focus. Also, the bright area on the left is distracting - I'd crop that bit out to bring attention to our main stars, like so:<a class="url" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/jhuyzc847vmltqq/314a42f8.jpg" rel="external nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.dropbox.com/s/jhuyzc847vmltqq/314a42f8.jpg</a>Keep it up, Steve, and don't be afraid to crop and repost.Cheers,Guido

<img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/64855790" alt="Chucks Photos - image 1 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/64855790 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/64855790 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy"><img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/532b754b" alt="Chucks Photos - image 2 - student project" width="561" height="342" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/532b754b 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/532b754b 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy"><img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/069b79b9" alt="Chucks Photos - image 3 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/069b79b9 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/069b79b9 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy"><img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/7b2ee366" alt="Chucks Photos - image 4 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/7b2ee366 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/7b2ee366 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy">No Parking on the road shoulders, someone had a sense of humour.
<img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/314a42f8" alt="Chucks Photos - image 5 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/314a42f8 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/f540363a4c07f922f09aff76a9b8300c/314a42f8 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy">Abigails first contact with Birds.
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