Nature Photography Photo Workshop

4.1. PRINCIPLES OF PHOTOGRAPHIC DESIGN

Good nature photography is a process of elimination. In all nature photography, you start with visual chaos. Infinite possibilities are available when making a picture; your main objective is to choose what you want to show in the photograph and eliminate everything else. When you're framing a shot, find what doesn't fit and get rid of everything that doesn't directly contribute to your vision for the picture. Identify the main subject and remove all distractions to distill the image down to only the essential elements.

A great way to learn composition is to study painting. Although, unlike painting, with photography you're somewhat constrained by the reality of a scene, the fundamental principles of building a strong picture apply equally to painting and photography. Some of the best books on composition are aimed at painters.

4.1.1. THE PROCESS OF ELIMINATION

New photographers often are inclined to try to get everything possible into a picture. You're standing there, surrounded by magnificent beauty, and you want to capture it for everyone else to feel it exactly as you did. This is impossible. Always remember that a photograph cannot ever completely communicate the experience of being there. The limitations imposed by the frame and the two-dimensional viewing experience dictate this. Your job is to find the essence of the scene that most ...