How Great Photographers Composed Their Images

Photography Tips

Composition is a common conversation-starter in photography. Since photography is a visual art form, your composition largely determines how you communicate with your viewers. In fact, you could say that composition is the essence of photography. Your composition determines whether your photograph will successful or not. It is, after all, the bridge between the photograph and the viewers. In today’s insightful video, photographer Ted Forbes takes some examples from the works of Karl Blossfeldt and Henri Cartier-Bresson and discusses their visual language. Watch the video and it’ll definitely help you to develop a strong sense of composition:

Forbes shares a very interesting message by correlating composition with music. Just like different notes work together to create pleasing music, in visual composition, various elements should talk to each other to create a pleasing image. So when you’re composing your image, don’t just look at your subject—also pay attention to how the other elements in the frame play with your subject. Having some understanding of their interaction will definitely make your composition stronger. To explain this notion further, he takes the example of a famous photographer “Behind the Gare Saint-Lazare” by photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson and explains why exactly the image is popular.

“Opportunity is going to come along but only when you’re prepared to meet it.”

Another important aspect that Forbes discusses is the need to wait for the decisive moment. You cannot expect your photos to come out great simply by shooting whatever you see in front of you. You will often need to wait for the magic to happen—the decisive moment. And while you’re waiting for the decisive moment, ensure that you’re prepared to capture it. Often such decisive moments last for a very short time, so have your composition ready and be ready for the decisive moment to add a spark of life to your images.

Be sure to watch the complete video to know more about how great photographers compose their images. You can definitely learn a thing a two from their work.