Friday Photo Tip #3 Straight Line Appreciation
Today's tip is one of my favorites and hopefully will help all of the aspiring photographers out there. This tip is really obvious, but I think it's worth mentioning... because as a "rule" I use this method every single freaking time I take a photo. I like to call it...
Now look at your image and try to find something that you can line up with the grid lines (windows, buildings, street poles, etc). Try it yourself using the image above. What you are basically trying to do is compose the image so that your subject matter (or landscape or whatever) is parallel to the ground. When you're shooting a cityscape like the one above, I usually look at the buildings because in most cases, if you're not shooting the leaning Tower of Pisa, buildings are are perpendicular to the ground...
In the photo below I've highlighted some key areas (marked in bright green) that could be used as markers to straighten out the photo.
Any of the green markers in the above photo could be used to straighten out the image above. Notice that I didn't choose Sutro Tower (big transmission tower) on top of the hill - why? Because if you look closely, it doesn't create a perfectly straight vertical line.
Depending on the subject matter of the photo, you can also find elements that are horizontal instead of vertical. For example, if you're taking a shot of the ocean, you want to line up the horizon with a horizontal line... Now lets take away the grid!
Once you start lining things up with an imaginary grid, it will become second nature to you and you won't even have to think about it. Good luck!
Straight Line Appreciation
Ever take a nice landscape or cityscape photo and it just looks terrible because it's all crooked? Let me tell you an easy way to make any photo great (or at least better). This tip will help make your images look confident and grounded. For this example I'm going to use a photo of a lovely blanket of fog rolling covering the Twin Peaks area of San Francisco. I took this photo while I was in the car on the freeway... When you're composing your image, pretend there's a grid on top of it (see below). Most cameras have markers inside the viewfinder to help you compose your image. If you're shooting with a point and click digital camera and your viewfinder is the display on the back of the camera (in real time), then you'll have to imagine the grid lines. Otherwise, hold the camera up to your eye and look inside. You'll be surprised what you find.
Now look at your image and try to find something that you can line up with the grid lines (windows, buildings, street poles, etc). Try it yourself using the image above. What you are basically trying to do is compose the image so that your subject matter (or landscape or whatever) is parallel to the ground. When you're shooting a cityscape like the one above, I usually look at the buildings because in most cases, if you're not shooting the leaning Tower of Pisa, buildings are are perpendicular to the ground...
In the photo below I've highlighted some key areas (marked in bright green) that could be used as markers to straighten out the photo.
Any of the green markers in the above photo could be used to straighten out the image above. Notice that I didn't choose Sutro Tower (big transmission tower) on top of the hill - why? Because if you look closely, it doesn't create a perfectly straight vertical line.
Depending on the subject matter of the photo, you can also find elements that are horizontal instead of vertical. For example, if you're taking a shot of the ocean, you want to line up the horizon with a horizontal line... Now lets take away the grid!
Once you start lining things up with an imaginary grid, it will become second nature to you and you won't even have to think about it. Good luck!Recommended Posts
