Category: Tips and Tricks

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Always be aware of how much of your subject is in the frame (or not).

One of my biggest pet peeves? Seeing an amazing photo but….noticing that the subject has been cut off at a distracting portion.

How Much of your Subject is in the frame? Why Does it Matter?

Have you ever seen a photo of a person that you loved, but realized that the “full body” image was cut off at the ankles? Or in a close up image they had arms, but they were cut off at the elbow or wrist? Or missing fingers?

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One of the first things I learned about composition in photography was the rule of thirds. I follow it a lot, whether it is as I’m shooting, or cropping after the shot.

What is the Rule of Thirds?

Picture your image with what looks like a tic tac toe grid over top of it. Using the rule of thirds, your subject would be placed on one of the horizontal or vertical lines instead of in the center. You also want to take into account the places where the lines meet (upper left or right, lower left or right) and use these for the most important part of the image.

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Why Pay Attention to the Background?

Why do you need to pay attention to the background when you should be focusing on your subject? Um….have you ever seen a photo with a tree (or light post) growing out of your subjects head?

And its not just things growing out of your subjects head – it could be your subject blending in to the background, or…a penis on a graffiti wall behind your subject (yes, yes it was me that made that mistake).

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What is Depth of Field?

Depth of field is the portion or distance in the image that is “in focus”. High Depth of field would show your entire image from foreground to background in focus. A lower depth of field would show blurry backgrounds and foregrounds.

Which is better – low or high DOF? It depends on what you are shooting and how you want it portrayed.