Brooks Jensen Arts - Every Picture Is a Compromise

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Every Picture is a Compromise
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Every Picture Is a Compromise

Lessons from the Also-rans

Most photography websites show the photographer's very best work. Wonderful. But that's not the full story of a creative life. If we want to learn, we'd better pay attention to the images that aren't "greatest hits" and see what lessons they have to offer. Every picture is a compromise — the sum of its parts, optical, technical, visual, emotional, and even cosmic – well, maybe not cosmic, but sometimes spiritual. Success on all fronts is rare. It's ok to learn from those that are not our best.

This is a series about my also-rans, some of which I've been able to improve at bit (i.e., "best effort"), none of which I would consider my best. With each there are lessons worth sharing, so I will.

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Reasons to Crop an Image #2
Fit the frame to the subject

There are those who insist that cropping is a cheat for not composing accurately in the camera. I disagree. Never feel guilty about cropping if it makes the picture better. This week will offer examples.

What I saw that I liked:

That lazy cloud that spans the horizon above the mountain.

What I don't like in the picture:

All that blue sky above the cloud adds nothing to the original composition.

What I learned:

If parts of the image aren't contributing anything of importance, crop them out. Invariably, the resulting cropped image will be stronger. In this example, the longer aspect ratio is a perfect fit for the shape of the scene.