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The Right Way to Travel, Weekly Photo Tip
July 18, 2007
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DON'T JUST CUT... CHOP
By Shelly Perry in Portland, OR
At AWAI's live photography workshops, professional photographer Rich Wagner and I are always telling the attendees to get closer to whatever it is they're photographing.
"Fill the frame with your subject," we say and what we mean is: If your viewfinder is a frame, you should fill it with more of your subject and with less empty space or distracting background.
Often, this tip improves an attendee's photographs. But sometimes, if they're not careful, it ruins them. Here's what I mean...
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...then I invite you to join us in Hershey, Pennsylvania this September 14-16 to spend three power-packed days learning from our experts how you can not only take professional-quality pet photos, but turn them into cash, too.
For more details, visit: http://www.thephotographerslife.com/petphoto
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A few weeks ago, I sent you a tip on photographing people and I cautioned against cropping a person at their joints. Crops on joints are distracting. (Click here for examples.)
And just like cropping on joints is distracting, so is clipping off just a small piece of something. And that sometimes happens when you get in TOO close to your subject.
Take, for instance, these two photographs from this month's challenge...
Both of these photos are basically well composed, except for one factor -- the back end of the man's hat and the tip of the kitten's ear have both been clipped off.
And the truth is, this happens all the time (for instance, I saw a bunch of clipped bike tires ruin some otherwise impressive shots representing last month's theme).
My point is: Getting in close to your subject is a good idea. Most often, it'll improve your photograph tremendously. But when you do, be sure to look edge to edge, corner to corner, and all around your frame.
Make sure you keep in everything you want and everything that is important to your subject and eliminate everything that is not.
And when you do clip, make sure it's intentional. A kitten's ear that is meant to be chopped is far less distracting than an unintentional clip...
EDITOR'S NOTE: To learn more about how you can make $1,000 a day photographing pets, click here: http://www.thephotographerslife.com/petphoto
[Shelly Perry from Portland, Oregon, specializes in people photography, what she calls documentary or lifestyle portraits. She is known especially for her imaging of children. Shelly's concern for people is reflected both in her sense of purpose and the images she produces. Her images have been seen all over the globe on music CD covers, books, magazines, catalogues, web sites, ad campaigns and even on TV. Her work has also appeared in several local exhibits and gallery shows.
To meet Shelly in person, visit: http://www.thephotographerslife.com/santafe]
ENTER TO WIN!
Log on to our website at: http://www.thephotographerslife.com and register to win.
Submit your photos by 8:00 a.m. EST, Monday, July 30th. If you're a first-time user, you'll need to register first on the "register" link on the right side bar. Once you have a username and password, click "Enter to Win" to upload your photo. Only one photo per applicant will be considered.
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The Right Way to Travel is a FREE newsletter from the American Writers & Artists Inc., available to AWAI members and friends.
This newsletter is coming to you because you are either a member of The Ultimate Travel Writer's Program or Turn Your Pictures into Cash, or you have opted to receive information about getting paid to travel from the AWAI Travel Division.
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