ComposingGood PhotographsMarc LevoyComputer Science DepartmentStanford UniversityCS 178, Spring 2011“There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs.” - Ansel Adams! Marc LevoyOutline!the pictorial elements of photography•line and form•pattern and texture•tone and color!pictorial design,i.e. the design in the 2D picture frame•symmetry and balance•framing•common compositions!things we won’t talk about today-situation, storyline, viewpoint, field of view, focus, lighting, exposure, color balance, post-processing3! Marc LevoyLearning good composition!there are no rules•there are only tools and heuristics!like describing wine with words, they don’t mean much•they merely give us a framework for thinking about issues!the best way to learn is to take lots of pictures•think about the issues as you take them•critique your photographs, and have others critique them!look at good photographs by others•most useful if you’ve also tried the same thing yourself4In response to one student’s clever question about how I would summarize this lecture if I had to do so while standing on one foot, I might say that I hope to convey the message that great photographs are seldom accidents. Good photographers think about pictorial design. You should too.! Marc LevoyLines as a pictorial element5Ansel Adams, Aspens, 1958! Marc LevoyArrangement of lines6(Freeman Patterson)! Marc LevoyLines as a decorative element7([email protected])! Marc LevoyLines that lead your eye to the subject8Hiromu Kira, The Thinker, 1930(London)! Marc LevoyLines that lead your eye to the subject9(Bryan Peterson)• the lines don’t need to be man-made, or smoothRaphael,Galatea, 1513(Gardner)! Marc LevoyForm - lines with meaning11(Bryan Peterson)first shotsecond shot! Marc LevoyForm - lines with meaning12Edward Weston, Pepper No. 30, 1930Georgia O’Keeffe,Grey Line, 1923! Marc LevoyShape - readily identifiable form14(Bryan Peterson)• backlighting draws attention to shape! Marc LevoyShape - readily identifiable form15! Marc LevoyPattern - repeated forms16(Bryan Peterson)first shotsecond shot! Marc LevoyPattern - repeated forms17Abhaneri Stepwell,Rajasthan, IndiaFrederick Evans,The Sea of Steps -Wells Cathedral, 1903! Marc LevoyRhythm - a looser kind of pattern20(Freeman Paterson)Auguste Renoir, Le Moulin de la Galette, 1876! Marc LevoyTexture:fine patterns22• early product of f/64 club• sharp focus, smooth papers• reaction against PictorialistsAnsel Adams, Boards and Thistles, 1932! Marc LevoyTexture23Edward Weston, Dunes, Oceano, 1936• co-founder of f/64 club with Ansel AdamsFrank Lloyd Wright, Fallingwater, 1934Frank Lloyd Wright, Fallingwater, 1934 (photographs by Galen Frysinger)! Marc LevoyLighting as an aid to pictorial design26Fluor Garduño,Basket of Light, Guatemala, 1989(London)Yousuf Karsh,Winston Churchill, 1941Rembrandt van Rijn,Self Portrait, 1660Yousuf Karsh,Winston Churchill, 1941Rembrandt van Rijn,Portrait of Nicolaes Ruts, 1631! Marc LevoyTone as a pictorial element29Robert Mapplethorpe! Marc LevoyColor as a pictorial element30warmcool(Hedgecoe)pictorial(London)! Marc LevoyColor as an accent31(Hedgecoe)! Marc LevoyEncircled by color32(Hedgecoe)Giovanni Bellini, Altarpiece ofS. Zaccaria, Venice, 1505!! Marc LevoyColor as rhythmic accent34(Hedgecoe)Peter Paul Rubens, The Judgement of Paris, 1636Diego Velázquez,Las Meninas, 1656! Marc LevoyPictorial design!symmetry and balance!framing!common compositions37! Marc LevoySymmetry38(Marc Levoy)Arcade in Red Fort,Delhi, 2008! Marc LevoySymmetry39Place du Carrousel,Paris, 2009(Marc Levoy)! Marc LevoyAsymmetry40(Marc Levoy)• off-center placement of main subject underscores the asymmetry of the architectureMontmartre, 2009Rajasthan, 2008! Marc LevoyBalance41• symmetrical background + dynamic, unbalanced foreground(Freeman Paterson)Jacque-Louis David, Oath of the Horatii, 1784! Marc LevoyFraming43(Marc Levoy)! Marc LevoyMore dynamic framing44Dennis Stock,James Dean,1955• shadow edges complete the frame• slashing diagonals create tension(London)! Marc LevoyThe picture frame45first shot(Bryan Peterson)second shotRaphael, School of Athens, 1511! Marc LevoyCommon compositions!upright equilateral triangle•calm, stability, power!diagonal•tension, discord, dynamism!S-curve•motion, sensuality•eye flow!rule of thirds47In response to an insightful question from a student about whether this lecture would have a different message, or whether this list of compositional ideas would be different, if I illustrated the lecture with examples from modern art rather than pre-20th century art, I conjecture that modern art has contributed additional ideas, but not banished the ones on this list. Later in the course I’ll talk about 20th century photography, interleaved with examples of modern art. Let’s see if my conjecture proves right.Titian, Madonna of the Pesaro Family, 1526Raphael, Madonna with the Goldfinch, 1506Titian, Madonna of the Pesaro Family, 1526Raphael, Madonna with the Goldfinch, 1506Titian, Venus of Urbino, 1538Titian, Venus of Urbino, 1538pendant! Marc LevoyPhotographic examples52Edward Weston, Charis Wilson Nude, 1936! Marc LevoyPhotographic examples53Jimmy Sinhttp://www.pbase.com/aloha_lavina/librodo_workshop_malaysia• diagonal leading to her eye• eye and shoulder use rule of thirds• stems create frame within a frame• partially hidden face creates mystery! Marc LevoyPhotographic examples54Jimmy Sinhttp://www.pbase.com/aloha_lavina/librodo_workshop_malaysia• diagonal leading to her eye• eye and shoulder use rule of thirds• stems create frame within a frame• partially hidden face creates mystery! Marc LevoyS-curve55(photoinf.com)large collection of articlesabout photographic composition! Marc LevoyS-curve56Ansel Adams,Tetons and Snake River, 1942! Marc LevoyPictorial design57(John Shappell)(Samuel Schulenburg)(Jay Bergeson - converted to B&W)St. Teresa’s Church,Bodega, California! Marc LevoyPictorial design58Ansel Adams, 1953(John Shappell)! Marc LevoyAlfred Hitchcock, The Birds (1963)59Potter’s Schoolhouse andSt. Teresa’s Church, Bodega! Marc LevoyParting thoughts (from Fredo Durand)!simplify your picture•avoid cluttered backgrounds60• reposition yourself! Marc LevoyParting thoughts!simplify your picture•avoid cluttered backgrounds61• use a shallow depth of field(Marc Levoy)! Marc LevoyParting thoughts!simplify