Composition and Design

Todays lecture focused on one of my favoutite elements of photography, Composition. The elements incorporated into a successful image such as Line, Rhythm, Shape, Resonance, Texture, Tone and Perspective really appeal to my love of Design.

Tone can establish form, create a sense of mood and produce a sense of depth. High key images such as this one use predominantly light tones or highlights. A black should also be present to establish key placement. High key images are often used when the photographer wishes to portray a sense of innocence, purity and lightness (Glenn Porter 2001).

Experimenting with Hue/Saturation, I removed all of the colour values in Photoshop except for magenta. This highlighted the pink of the face makeup which provides a striking contrast in the otherwise B & W image.

Line in composition - Jagged lines can imply aggression, violence, fast speed, mayhem and the unpredictable (Glenn Porter, 2001).

Here is an example of an image that didn't work because it was so underexposed. I actually really like the composition, the jagged lines of the kids arms imply aggression, movement and violence, lending drama and interest to the image. Unfortunatly the image was taken in low light conditions and there was not enough light to work with, even setting the camera at 2500 ISO in an attempt to properly expose the shot. I didn't feel the scene suited a flash and if i has taken the time to get a tripod, the shot would have been well and truly over, not to mention the mood would have changed completely. In hindsight I should have used a flash as the hard light would probably have suited the subject.
By lightening the image sufficiently in Photoshop to make it viewable, there is too much noise to render it a successful image.