Composition Rules and Myths
The members of Keyworth Camera Club were witness to a very different style of guest presentation on Thursday night when we were entertained and educated by Sue Clark of Conwy Camera Club. Sue spent the evening talking about the various rules and myths surrounding a key aspect of photography, namely composition. Sue had spent a considerable amount of time in recent years listing and researching the many “rules” that photographers, film makers and judges use, or ignore, and she talked about the origin of some of the rules and how they have been manipulated over time. Sue shared many examples of the Rule of Thirds, The Golden Ratio, often referred to by the Greek Letter “phi” and the Fibonnacci numbers. The images illustrated just how these guides would impact on an image making it more, or in some cases less appealing to the eye.
We were also given examples of the benefits of using lines whether they be vertical, horizontal or diagonal and showed how they contributed to creating different moods in the images. One of her most memorable images was used to show the preference in most of Europe for images that worked in a left to right direction, based on the direction that our eyes move when reading books and other written communications. Examples of good and bad leading lines were also featured. Finally, Sue stressed the benefits of good cropping to generate the desired balance and impact that the photographer was trying to generate.
Members agreed that this was a most thought-provoking presentation delivered in a quite formal yet very informative and entertaining manner.
