The IOP Rules of Photography Composition

In this blog post, IOP looks at the rules of photography composition, which will help you to compose a great photo every time.
In photography, getting the composition just right can make the difference between a mediocre photograph and one which has the wow factor. Have a look at the IOP Rules of Composition for some great hints and tips that you can use on your next photography outing. 


1. Keep it simple


When your eyes take in a scene, they can quickly distinguish points of interest in your field of view and disregard things that are not of interest. Your camera cannot do this – whatever you point the camera at, it will capture. This means you have to really consider the placement of items within a scene.
A good tip is to choose one focal point and concentrate on highlighting this focal point and bringing it to the forefront of the frame. You can use camera technique, colour, lighting and leading lines to do this effectively.


2. Fill up that frame

The biggest mistake that photography beginners make in terms of composition is leaving too much empty space in the frame. If you are unsure of how much of your subject to capture, fill that frame for a more dramatic composition. You can either zoom in or get closer, it’s up to you, but make it clear to your viewer that this is your subject and be bold with your composition.
Filling the frame also cuts out the clutter that can be a compositional distraction.


3. Vary the aspect

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Think about what you are photographing and whether it would better lend itself to a horizontal or vertical frame. Generally, if your subject is vertical, then a portrait aspect is better than a landscape aspect. A good example of this would be a waterfall, where taking the shot in a portrait (or vertical) aspect would highlight and enhance the shape and flow of the water. Conversely, a rolling landscape would suit a landscape (or horizontal) aspect to give a sense of scale and distance.

 

4. Avoid the middle ground

You have probably heard about the rule of thirds. Very simply, this means that you should try to avoid placing your subject right in the middle of the frame. Compositionally, photographs work better if your subject is to the left or right of the frame. The rule of thirds is fascinating and there is so much to learn on this subject. Just knowing a few simple tips around the rule of thirds can immediately improve your photography.  We cover the rule of thirds extensively in all our photography courses.

5. Room to breathe

Remember we talked about placing your subject in the left or right of the frame? Think about which way the subject is facing and give them space to move into. The natural movement of the eye will be to look at the subject and then where the subject is going. If you leave space for your subject to move into in the photograph, it feels compositionally natural to the eye and is more enjoyable to view.

6. Toe the line

A photograph is a journey that your eye takes around the frame. Look at any photograph and watch how your eyes move around the composition. Have you thought why this is? A good image will have been composed with this in mind and one of the best ways to lead a viewer through a photo is by using leading lines. Fences, roads, cloud trails, footprints in the sand – these are all devices you can use to create leading lines.  

7. Go diagonal


Get a dynamic feel into your photography and start thinking diagonally. Once you have mastered leading lines, change your perspective and think about how to introduce some diagonals to create movement and power through your photograph.
A great tip is to get down low – this strengthens diagonals and makes them more pronounced.  

8. What’s your background?


The main thing here is to actually consider what impact your background will have on the composition. Will it add something or would you prefer it as unobtrusive as possible? Are there any distracting objects? You would be amazed how many photos we see which have distracting objects in the frame and the photographer simply has not spotted them.

9. Paint with colour


Colours are part of composition too. Photography is painting with light after all. Bright colours will draw the eye more than dark colours, so you can use them in the frame to create that journey. Think about tones and using shade to create a story. 

10. Be a rule breaker


Our final tip is to break all the rules, but only when you understand them!

Our online photography courses cover all these topics and more.

Find out about the IOP team here.

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