Frank Wang

A Crash Course in Photographic Composition

Hi Vivian! Comments below:Julia / brooklyn flea - I see what you mean about the spot of light. It makes for some cool shadows. I'd have moved Julia a bit forward and put the spot of light on her face. As Guido's pointed out, she's a bit dark / under-exposed, and while that's not necessarily a bad thing, we'd probably want the attention to be Julia's face, and not her neck. It would also help separate her from the background. Tea Cup Rings - Great shot. Love the colors. The repeating shapes and diagonal lines always make for a cool image. Next time you see a scene like this, try shooting it from directly above, bird's eye. That might give you a cool, abstract pattern. Bikes - The symmetry is great, especially the repeating patterns of the bike circles. Guido's suggestion is spot-on regarding a tighter crop. This image also benefits from there being a bit of foreground (the ground) that helps lead the eye into the bikes. If you wanted to have the foreground play a bigger role, one option would have been to shoot from a slightly lower perspective. The white bicycle tires, which to me is the strongest element of the image, sits nicely on the bottom horizontal third as well. Nicely done. Soho / Man Reading - This is my favorite shot of the series. I like how you captured the lighting on the man reading. Good job using thirds to place your subject as well. Julia #2 - Channeling a bit of the sartorialist with this street shot. I like how you placed Julia in the middle of the bike lane. The painted lines on the ground function well as leading lines. With images of this type you can experiment with placing your subject dead center to bring out the symmetry of the bike lane lines.

Hi Vivian,Great see some photos up here and apologies we haven't gotten to them sooner!Julia #1 would be a lovely shot but the background is too similar to her in terms of colour and shade which means she doesn't get the attention she deserves apart from the sun of her neck. Warm patches of sun look fantastic when we see them with our eyes, but camera sensors rarely do them justice - there's just too much dynamic range to handle it. Your camera did a good job here, but unfortunately, that has left the rest of Julia underexposed. In case like these, it pays to take a few steps to the left or right to find an angle that lights the subject in a more pleasing way. Also, if possible, shoot with a faster lens such as 50/1.8 to blur out the background. It's fun to see the bustle of a flea market but you don't want the bustle to overpower your subject. Hope this makes sense!Your exposure is A+ in all other shots, though, well done!My favourite here is the Soho wall. Great blue background with an arrow pointing (roughly) at your subject, with some fun oranges and greens thrown in. If you crop this just a bit more tightly, you can get rid of things like the bin/mailbox on the left and the bright bits on the right, leaving you with a nice frame. <a class="url" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/3pkteo9zu2tacit/4f426b6b.jpeg" rel="external nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.dropbox.com/s/3pkteo9zu2tacit/4f426b6b.jpeg</a> (processing is crap - using Preview instead of LR)The bikes and Julia #2 could also use a slightly tighter crop.<a class="url" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/xxxmh73y2g0qgbc/43e6ad1c.jpg" rel="external nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.dropbox.com/s/xxxmh73y2g0qgbc/43e6ad1c.jpg</a>and<a class="url" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/p9qx91zsav2iir9/4ae1e2f6.jpg" rel="external nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.dropbox.com/s/p9qx91zsav2iir9/4ae1e2f6.jpg</a>Keep up the good work :)

Hi Vivian! Looking forward to seeing your work!

<img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/94a426ea" alt="Pops of spring in New York City - image 1 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/94a426ea 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/94a426ea 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy">
My lovely friend Julia came to visit me in New York from LA, and we went to the Brooklyn Flea to do some shopping. &nbsp;I loved how the light was hitting her neck in this picture...
<img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/02952ef5" alt="Pops of spring in New York City - image 2 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/02952ef5 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/02952ef5 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy">
A fun find at the Brooklyn Flea - tea cup rings!
<img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/43e6ad1c" alt="Pops of spring in New York City - image 3 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/43e6ad1c 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/43e6ad1c 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy">
After the Brooklyn Flea, we walked all around the city. &nbsp;I loved the symmetry of these bikes and the red pop of color.
<img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/4f426b6b" alt="Pops of spring in New York City - image 4 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/4f426b6b 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/4f426b6b 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy">
A great wall in Soho and love the lighting again....
<img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/4ae1e2f6" alt="Pops of spring in New York City - image 5 - student project" srcset="http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/4ae1e2f6 600w, http://s3.amazonaws.com/skillshare/uploads/project/480412a2eff2e97ff35794b5400787fb/4ae1e2f6 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 600px, 100vw" loading="lazy">
I'm a huge fan of street style photography - here is my attempt with my friend Julia. &nbsp;Love the contrasting patterns and colors she is wearing.

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