SEEING and COMPOSING
exercise
This is a follow-up
to the warmup exercise.
Take your camera off automatic and use Aperture
Priority Mode
Take your ISO
off auto and set it for the appropriate light. Low
ISO for bright light, High ISO for dim light.
Quick guide for
f/stop/ISO-
When the light is low: f/stop
is low number (like f /3.5) ISO is high (400 +)
When the light is bright: (Outdoor
daylight) ISO is low (100) f/stop is higher number (like f/16)
Practice Aperture
Priority with the creepy girl Camera
Simulator
Make
sure your White Balance is on Automatic
Shoot at least
200 images.
Start looking for design elements that make a strong photograph
Shoot at least 10 images of each category: Lines, Shapes, Strong color,
Soft color, Shadows and Textures
Subject matter doesn't matter, try for variety of subjects, locations
and time of day.
Our eyes and brain
work together to capture the visual world around us. The eye has no boundaries;
it scans the scene changing focus seamlessly. We are not consciously aware
of the process. If we want to see something, we do. The images stream
into our brain like a video image, constant and uninterrupted.
A still camera is different,
very different.
The camera captures the scene in a restricted rectangular
frame. The photographer uses the window the camera looks through to
decide where to place that frame.
Our eyes see the world in three dimentions (stereo vision). We perceive
a sense of distance and perspective. The camera converts this world
into a flat two-dimensional image.
The camera captures the scene in chunks of time: short time to freeze
motion or long time to blur motion.
The photographer
has many creative choices.
Once the technical aspects of lighting and exposure are
resolved, the photographer can use many tools to interpret the scene
and create exciting, compelling images.
Using the technical
skills you have learned - shoot strong, well composed images that demonstrate
the following attributes:
Lines
Shapes
Strong color
Soft color
Shadows
Texture
KEEP THESE GUIDES
IN MIND WHEN SHOOTING
Framing:
making order out of the chaos
The photographer sees the complete scene and must
decide what to include and more importantly, what to exclude. This
visual editing isn't always obvious. The photographer should experiment
and try many options to determine what best represents the vision they
want to share.
Horizontal
or Vertical
Most cameras take rectangular images, not square or
circular. Computer printers call it landscape and portrait, referring
to the photographic composition. Most cameras are designed to take
horizontal images by default. It is up to the photographer to rotate
the camera to see what the composition can be. Look for design elements
such as strong linear elements that lend themselves to horizontal
or vertical placement. The photographer needs to pay attention to
placement of shapes and lines in the frame. It is not always obvious
what orientation is best, so try them al
l
Angles
and different points of view
Tilting the camera and placing the camera high or low
in relation to the subject can alter the viewers perception of the
image.