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Photo Composition: Tips For Composing The Perfect Photo

Learning how to compose your photographs can mean the difference between a so-so snapshot and a high quality picture. This article will give you useful composition tips for taking great digital pictures.

Filling the Frame & Clearing Clutter

Although there are exceptions to this rule, usually filling the frame is one of the simplest things you can do to improve your composition.

Most people make the mistake of trying to include too much in their picture and end up with a boring photo where nothing really stands out.

For example, if you are taking a picture of your child playing on a swing, you should fill the frame of you child on the swing and leave out the swingset and other background clutter like Uncle Ed tending to the barbeque.

If you don't fill the frame with just your child, you will lose them in the background and won't be able to capture their excited expression from swinging high in the air. You can always go back and take a close up of Uncle Ed flipping the burgers.

A nice thing about digital cameras is that after you take the picture you can check for clutter in playback mode. By checking the picture right away, you often can retake the picture and make it better by getting everyone smiling or removing clutter from the background like a lamp post or tree branch.

Sometimes leaving lots of empty space in the photo also works well. You might take a picture of something that fills two thirds of the photo for effect. Make sure to get close enough to your subject so they fill up at least a third of the viewfinder or frame. So now it's time to talk about one of the most important tips for taking digital photographs.

Rule of Thirds

Most pictures have the subject directly centered in the picture with a lot of empty space (or clutter) around them. This happens because most people use digital compacts in autofocus mode and these cameras usually have a center-weighted focus.

Professionally taken photographs rarely have the subject in the center because they use manual focus (we'll look at a trick that digital compact users can sometimes use). If you have a DSLR you can also use this easy focusing trick.

The "Rule of Thirds" is one of the most popular techniques. With this technique, the photographer has to visualize six evenly spaced lines breaking the viewfinder into nine even boxes. Some cameras have a feature that lets you opt to have this tic tac toe grid, superimposed over your image in preview mode.

By using the grid in preview mode (or visualizing a grid), you can compose a picture where the subject is on one of the lines or intersections instead of the middle of your picture. And don't worry about lining up your subject exactly to the grid lines as it is only intended as a guide. With a little practice, using the rule of thirds will become second nature.

Keeping Focused

So, it's time to talk about how to get your subject in focus without placing them directly in the center of your picture. This technique works great for subjects that are not moving, like people sitting down or a picture of a statue or tree. Here is how you do it:

1. Move your subject in the middle of the frame where your viewfinder's focus point is in the center and press the shutter release button half way down.

2. Wait for the green light to glow so you know the focus is locked.

3. Keeping your finger pressed on the shutter release button so it stays pressed half way down, move the camera until you have the composition you want.

4. Now, hold the camera steady and press the shutter the rest of the way down.

5. Always wait for the green light because that is the camera's signal that it has taken the picture.

More Composition Tips for Taking Digital Pictures (Or Film)

Focus on something specific on your subject. For example, with people and animals, this is usually the eyes because they are so expressive.

To make photos pop, develop a photographer's eye for contrast. Contrast in a picture is good when the brights are bright and the dark colors are dark.

Too add interest to a set of photos of a given subject, take photos from different angles. Get a different perspective by getting up high or lying down on the ground. It is best to vary the angle in which you take your pictures so you can show different perspectives and views.

By using these tips, you'll be able to compose great pictures and display them on your wall for all to enjoy.

About the Author

Autumn Lockwood is a writer for Your Picture Frames. Shop online and see our huge selection of picture frames like our fun scrapbook page frames and deep shadowbox wood frames. Visit our website and have fun frame shopping or call 1-800-780-0699.

I have a Vivicam 5024 and every time I turn it on every button I press takes a photo?

I have a Vivicam 5024 and every time I turn it on every button I press takes a photo. I have tried new batteries reformatting and unlocking memory card and the problem was not fixed. HELP

From the sounds of it....the camera was probably dropped.

Even if it wasn't, the camera is not worth getting it fixed. You can buy a new one for $35 (even cheaper if you look).

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