This is the 25th post in a 31 Day series: Creative Inspiration. Check out all the posts here.
I missed my post yesterday so this is yesterday's post. There will be a second post (Day 26) later on today.
As I mentioned in my last post, I am going to spend the last week of my 31 Days series discussing elements in photos that can easily be improved with a little attention. Or probably more accurately, ways to more effectively communicate using your camera in the way that you intend.
Today is about perspective and intimacy. I think what is important about this photo is two things - the angle and the proximity to the subject. As you can see, I am at the eye level of my son. The angle I might be tempted to take this photo would be from above. If I did that, however, I would not be able to see my son's face, so I would miss his intense expression.
The other thing I wanted to capture was my son's tapping fingers. Can you see the blur from their movement? This is his new (annoying) habit. If I took this photo from above, I would not be able to see those fast moving fingers so clearly. I probably should have used a higher shutter speed in order to show a bit more definition in my son's tapping fingers, but there was not much light to work with in the restaurant and I risked losing sharpness in the rest of the photo.
Do you also notice how close I am to my son? I was using a wide angle lens that allows me to use auto focus while being rather close to my subject (alternatively you could use manual focus if your lens needs to be further away). The tight proximity communicates intimacy. We are getting a view of this boy from an angle and a distance that only people who know him well get to see. We are in his personal space.
This photo does a good job of capturing his 'true personality.' It captures a habit in a way that is pronounced and easy to see, and we are viewing him while he is completely lost in a moment seemingly unaware of our presence, therefore he is being himeself and we believe he is not influenced by the camera.
TIP: My son's eyes (or in this case his eyelashes) are in sharp focus. The eyes are the most important part of the human face and therefore the most important part of a photo with a person as its subject. Your subject's eyes should be in focus. If only one eye is in focus, it should ideally be the one closest to the lens.
Here is another similar photo of my son, also lost in intense concentration being himself.
Do you see any similarities?
This time I am looking up towards his face, but the important thing you can see his face. I find photos so much more interesting if the subject's face is easy to see (except in rare exceptions). The more of the face, the better, in my opininion.
I adjust my body and the angle of my camera whenever possible to capture my subject's face. The perspective, again, is very important here because it allows us to get a good view.
We are also very close to our subject again, so we are creating that feeling of intimacy - we have entered his private world.
We feel that again because my son seems to be unaware of the presence of the camera. We are priveleged to get a glimpse of his true personality.
Notice also that his one visible eye is in focus.
TIP: Shooting up at your subject can be one way to deal with a cluttered environment or background. Behind my son is a messy playroom and a clothes drying rack. By shooting up at him, not only do I get a good view of his face, but the background of my photo is clean so my subject is clear. Everything left in the photo plays a vital part in the story.
More photos and tips tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!
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