A photograph is a picture that can communicate your experience to another. A photograph has its own history – past, present, and future- and does not require any outside support; it can stand alone, as a statement. A photograph should be able to state something in a way that would be impossible to do in another medium. Photography is a matter of order and harmony. The photographer battles the physical laws of universal entropy by attempting to control disorder within the photograph. The arrangement of objects within the pictorial space determines the success of the photograph. Order is good composition, which, as Edward Weston said, “ is the strongest way of seeing “ the subject. The basis of composition is design.
Design includes all the visual elements that make up a composition. Visual design is the organization of materials and forms in a certain way to fulfill a specific purpose. Design begins with the organization of parts into a coherent whole. A good photograph is an extension of the photographer and creates a response in the viewer. A good photograph possesses the ablity to sustain a viewer’s attention over an extended period of time. If the intentions are communicated successfully, the design of the photograph must be considered effective.
Putting It All Together
Anything touched by light can be photographed. Since it appears so easy when starting out in photography, many of us try to say to much in a picture. We often overcrowd the confines of the visual space with too much information. This can create a visual chaos in which the idea and motivation behind the pictures become lost. Don’t assume that anything that happens to you is going to be interesting to someone else. Learn to be selective.
Working Subtractively
When making photographs work simply and subtractively, a painter starts with nothing. Through the process of addition, the picture comes into being. A photographer, on the other hand, begins with everything. The photographic process is one of the subtraction. The critical power of the photographer is in the choosing. The photographer must decide what to leave out of the picture. Ray Metzker said,” The camera is nothing but a vacuum cleaner picking up everything within range. There has to be a higher degree of selectivity.”
President John F. Kennedy said,” Tp govern is to choose.” So too in the act of photography, selectivity is everything. Use subtractive composing by going directly for what you want to include in the picture and subtracting all that is not required. This subtractive method of putting the picture together can help you learn the basic visual vocabulary that produces the image.
A good photographer is like a magician who knows how to make all the unwanted objects on stage disappear, leaving only the necessary items to create striking illusion. For this reason it is necessary for the photographer to have a point of departure.
What Is A Good Photograph?
Design includes all the visual elements that make up a composition. Visual design is the organization of materials and forms in a certain way to fulfill a specific purpose. Design begins with the organization of parts into a coherent whole. A good photograph is an extension of the photographer and creates a response in the viewer. A good photograph possesses the ablity to sustain a viewer’s attention over an extended period of time. If the intentions are communicated successfully, the design of the photograph must be considered effective.
Putting It All Together
Anything touched by light can be photographed. Since it appears so easy when starting out in photography, many of us try to say to much in a picture. We often overcrowd the confines of the visual space with too much information. This can create a visual chaos in which the idea and motivation behind the pictures become lost. Don’t assume that anything that happens to you is going to be interesting to someone else. Learn to be selective.
Working Subtractively
When making photographs work simply and subtractively, a painter starts with nothing. Through the process of addition, the picture comes into being. A photographer, on the other hand, begins with everything. The photographic process is one of the subtraction. The critical power of the photographer is in the choosing. The photographer must decide what to leave out of the picture. Ray Metzker said,” The camera is nothing but a vacuum cleaner picking up everything within range. There has to be a higher degree of selectivity.”
President John F. Kennedy said,” Tp govern is to choose.” So too in the act of photography, selectivity is everything. Use subtractive composing by going directly for what you want to include in the picture and subtracting all that is not required. This subtractive method of putting the picture together can help you learn the basic visual vocabulary that produces the image.
A good photographer is like a magician who knows how to make all the unwanted objects on stage disappear, leaving only the necessary items to create striking illusion. For this reason it is necessary for the photographer to have a point of departure.
What Is A Good Photograph?
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