Can you develop an 'eye'

[Michele]

Ok, the more I look at pictures here I realize I don't have a good 'eye' for pictures. I would never think of the interesting views most of the pictures I love have. Do you think this is something that I can develop, that will come with time? Or do you think some people are just more creative in their thinking and it's instinctive?

 

[Anewman]

I think it is a little of both.

Some will just never have it, regardless of equipment and/or training.
Some are born photographers.

And then there are infinite number of degrees in between.

Without looking at any of your work, I am sure you can improve. Maybe you will never become the next "Ansel Adams", but I am 100% sure that you can develop your skills enough to impress your friends, family and yourself. Other photographers can be very critical and point out flaws that dont matter to most persons that view the image.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

I know that my "eye" has improved significantly over time. It started with learning, memorizing, and practicing the basic composition rules. Taking lots and lots of pictures helped. Reviewing and editing pictures on the computer gave me lots of chances to think about what I would have done differently. Finally, seeing other peoples pictures gave me lots of ideas and inspiration that I never had before.

I have to admit that I frequently see other people's pictures and think, "wow, why didn't I think of that."

 

[boBQuincy]

My "eye" has improved (at least I like to think so) by reading and re-reading the basics of composition. I printed some of the ideas on a small card and carry it in my camera bag. Once I have gotten over the "wow" factor and taken a few average photos of the castle, I look at the card and start thinking about what I can do better.

One of the best pieces of advice I ever read on photographic composition was to look at photographs as much as possible. Go to shows, galleries, look at books and magazines. Study the photographs to see what light was used, and how it affected the image.

Then go out and practice, a lot!

 

[Michele]

Mark and Bob...you both mention the rules or basics of composition. Where would I find these?

 

[ukcatfan]

Don't forget to take tons of shots. Only expect a small % to be good. Delete the rest. If you have the time, also take the same shot with different settings to see which turns out the best. Your instinct on the correct exposure, DOF, etc. might not give the best results, but if you have it different ways, then you can decide later.

Kevin

 

[jann1033]

you might want to also look over some of Betty Edwards books, ie Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain...it helps with composition and "seeing" and while it's focused on drawing it still applies.

also
http://photoinf.com/General/KODAK/guidelines_for_better_photographic_composition_introduction.html
http://www.stunik.com/faq/compostion.htm
http://photoinf.com/General/Geoff_Lawrence/Composition.html
if you google compostion of photography there are tons of articles

 

[G-Z-G Mom]

I was an art teacher for 18 years. In all the years I taught I only encountered one student that had desire that just made no progress what so ever. That's out of thousands and thousands of kids over the years. I am a firm believer that your creativity is just like a muscle. The more you use it the "fitter" it will be come. The answer to developing that eye, creative spark, or your own style is simply through work. THere are no short cuts. Some people start the creative journey further down the road than others but if they don't work...they won't progress. It's just that their work seems so much like play nobody realizes that they are working too.

One of the best activities I used to have my students do to ramp that creativity up is to work in a series. Choose a theme and then shoot it 67 times (just a magic number I came up with today. TOmorrow it may be 103 but you get the idea....a huge amount). Let's say your theme is the castle at MK. If you know you're going to HAVE to do 67 unique shots of that you will force yourself to think of new ways of seeing it. You will probably have 64 shots that are either boring, trite, or just junk....but....those other 3...that's what you were looking for.

Part of the creative experience is totaly giving something your full attention to connect with it. If you run around with all 3 of your preschool kids in tow (like me these days) trying to get those shots you may not get those 3 magic ones. The first several times you do this exercise it will be a struggle....but the more you do it the easier it becomes. Just like doing a physical activity like running a mile or something. The more you do this activity the higher your "keeper" average will go. You'll remember how cool it was to shoot something from way up high or super close. You'll start automatically culling those shots you know are loosers and start LOOKING for that great shot.

Give this method a try. I mean....really try it. Don't just say, "oh, that makes sense" and then never do it. Choose a subject and do those 97 shots. Don't short change yourself by doing 37 and then saying...Oh I get it. Do the HUGE number. It's the work at the end that causes the growth. Decide to make a committment to this exercise. Do this once a week or once a month and you will be AMAZED at what happens!

THere are a ton of other things that you can do to develop your eye but really try this one and I'll give you some more ideas!

 

[graeme1299]

I have never been seriously into photography until I got an H2 from Sony. Now as I drive down the road or walk to my son's soccer practice, I see things that make me wish I had my tripod and camera (or just my camera sometimes). Looking at photos helps a ton. It shows you what you think is good photography and shows you where your interests lie.

For instance, I don't like streetscapes too much. I love nature and landscapes. I stink at portraits but as I look at other ones and read and learn about composition and lighting, I get better.

The point is, my keeper percentage is way higher now than it was 6 months ago. I can only think it will continue to evolve and get better as I keep snapping.

 

[Michele]

Give this method a try. I mean....really try it. Don't just say, "oh, that makes sense" and then never do it. Choose a subject and do those 97 shots. Don't short change yourself by doing 37 and then saying...Oh I get it. Do the HUGE number. It's the work at the end that causes the growth. Decide to make a committment to this exercise. Do this once a week or once a month and you will be AMAZED at what happens!

THere are a ton of other things that you can do to develop your eye but really try this one and I'll give you some more ideas!

Thanks I will. I thought I was doing this but you are right, I would take about 10 or 15 pictures of something. I need to do it on a much bigger scale.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

Here are some of the basic composition rules that I follow:

1) Fill the frame. To the extent that you can, zoom in and/or change your position so that there is no space in the picture that isn't their for a reason.

2) Rule of Thirds. Most people have a natural tendency to put things like eyes or horizons right in the middle of the picture. It usually makes for a better picture if you put those things either one third of from the top or bottom of a picture.

If you're shooting someone, don't put their eyes in the middle. Put them higher up. That gets rid of wasted space above them.

If you are shooting a scene, put the horizon line higher. Don't waste space with a boring sky; use it for the picture. If the sky is supposed to be the focal point, move the horizon line down.

3) Think about where things are going. When you shoot a moving object, you aren't just capturing a moment, you are telling a story. If you shoot someone running towards the left of the picture and you position them towards the left, your story is about where they've been. If you shoot them towards the right, your story is about where they are going.

4) Balance. Pictures usually look better when they are roughly balanced.

5) Aspect Ratio. Use a vertical aspect ratio when you want people to look up and down at your picture. Use a horizontal one when you want them to read across it. Don't be afraid to use extreme aspect ratios when you want to make a more extreme statement. The most common of these is using a horizontal panorama to show a very wide interesting scene.

 

[tinksdad]

I was an art teacher for 18 years. In all the years I taught I only encountered one student that had desire that just made no progress what so ever. That's out of thousands and thousands of kids over the years. I am a firm believer that your creativity is just like a muscle. The more you use it the "fitter" it will be come. The answer to developing that eye, creative spark, or your own style is simply through work. THere are no short cuts. Some people start the creative journey further down the road than others but if they don't work...they won't progress. It's just that their work seems so much like play nobody realizes that they are working too.

One of the best activities I used to have my students do to ramp that creativity up is to work in a series. Choose a theme and then shoot it 67 times (just a magic number I came up with today. TOmorrow it may be 103 but you get the idea....a huge amount). Let's say your theme is the castle at MK. If you know you're going to HAVE to do 67 unique shots of that you will force yourself to think of new ways of seeing it. You will probably have 64 shots that are either boring, trite, or just junk....but....those other 3...that's what you were looking for.

Part of the creative experience is totaly giving something your full attention to connect with it. If you run around with all 3 of your preschool kids in tow (like me these days) trying to get those shots you may not get those 3 magic ones. The first several times you do this exercise it will be a struggle....but the more you do it the easier it becomes. Just like doing a physical activity like running a mile or something. The more you do this activity the higher your "keeper" average will go. You'll remember how cool it was to shoot something from way up high or super close. You'll start automatically culling those shots you know are loosers and start LOOKING for that great shot.

Give this method a try. I mean....really try it. Don't just say, "oh, that makes sense" and then never do it. Choose a subject and do those 97 shots. Don't short change yourself by doing 37 and then saying...Oh I get it. Do the HUGE number. It's the work at the end that causes the growth. Decide to make a committment to this exercise. Do this once a week or once a month and you will be AMAZED at what happens!

THere are a ton of other things that you can do to develop your eye but really try this one and I'll give you some more ideas!

Great advice!!

I've found with my own shooting that the normal run of the mill places and sights that are part of out "normal" day and be interesting if you put that composition eye to them.

As you roam around, look at everything as if you're looking through the viewfinder. Try to think of the composition guidelines as noted by Mark and think of how you would frame and shoot those scenes. It does get the creative juices flowing!

 

[barrie]

I've been trying to do the assignments on DPS. And not just finding an old photo that fits and posting it - I treat it like a new assignment and go out and do it.

I also like getting other people to critique my shots. I don't always agree with what they say but it gives me a different perspective. And I always learn something new.

I think where I've learned the most though is by looking at other people's photos. When I see photos that I really like or that make me go "wow" (lots of them on this board!) then I study the photo to see what I like about it - how was it composed, what was the light like, what kind of feeling did it evoke and how, etc.

I think I have a good eye, but I'm not good at the mechanics of trying to get the photo I imagine in my head. I have found that if I try too hard I am often disappointed with the results. My best photos seem to be the ones I take when I'm "feeling it", rather than when I think too much about getting it "right".

So I guess my recommendation is practice, practice, practice - then, when you're taking photos for fun, just go with your gut.

 

[Lachesis00]

I have the 'eye'. I get frustrated others do not see stuff as I do. My husband never use to but over time has really improved. In fact now there is stuff he and my son will see and I don't. Drives me crazy. It's cool though I see stuff they do not and vice versa.

My biggest problem is my photos are always ALWAYS CROOKED. Drives me crazy. I want some kind of meter inside that tells me they are straight or close to straight.

I have no perception at all, so maybe thats why they come out funky!

Oh so WAY off looking which is what a lot of my photos come out looking like

Getting a crink in the neck??

Just thought it looked cool, some kid running through the waves.

Hubby is straight, ocean isn't. Drives me nuts LOL

 

[jann1033]

one article i read mentioned something i do think is important...you need to really get familiar with your camera/technique...if you have to start to think what shutter you can use, aperture etc rather than kind of already knowing( or what lens etc, which i do) and have to dwell on that the compostion becomes secondary ( or not at all since you only have limited time sometimes). that to naturally comes with practice but if you don't have the basics down technically first it would be harder to have nice shots...i am like barrie...if i could just put my thought process on to the sensor and skip the camera i'd be fine ..it's the thinking of everything i need to remember that's killing me

 

[DueyDooDah]

My biggest problem is my photos are always ALWAYS CROOKED. Drives me crazy. I want some kind of meter inside that tells me they are straight or close to straight.

This is very common. I try to make it the last thing I look at before I snap the picture. I get everything set, say to myself, "this is it." Then I say (to myself again -- yes I do that too much) "Is the horizon straight?" Of course, it's not, so I make it right, and press the button.

When I get it home, I find it's still crooked but not nearly as much as it was before. So I take my favorite editing software and perform the critical "straighten and crop" option, then everything is right with the world. I grab my drink (Arizona green tea) and toast to my near-perfect photographic capabilities. Once I post it, noone ever knows (well, Mark does...he has that magic ball thing going that tells him everything about photography).

 

[barrie]

I noticed that I had many more crooked horizons when I used a point and shoot. I think the action of clicking on the shutter release moved the camera. Now that I have a heavier, more substantial camera it isn't as much of a problem.

 

[Lachesis00]

I shoot with a Canon 20d. What looks great to me in the view finder, does not come out great on the computer. What when I think I need to rotate right, I really need to rotate left.

Not AS many were crooked (or as many as I thought were off-kilter) as I thought, but enough where it bugs me. I hate post processing. Especially something as 'minor' as rotating LOL. I am always 1-3 degrees off. EVERY darn time.

I noticed that I had many more crooked horizons when I used a point and shoot. I think the action of clicking on the shutter release moved the camera. Now that I have a heavier, more substantial camera it isn't as much of a problem.

 

[Lachesis00]

I need a head banging icon LOL

What software do you use? I have to rotate and then crop. and no 2 photos are the same I am so lazy.

I warn anyone who looks at my photos, I never post process. Take them as you see them. Unless I really REALLY love the photo (or someone else does) I won't touch them period.

Of course I do not think I take that great of photos contrary to what others say. I never ever print out my photos. Once I went digital I stopped making hard copies. I did make some prints of the concerts I went to last year for friends, one of my husband for my MIL, some for my mom of my son and nephews, but I never print for myself.

I told someone who said I take good photos, that I probably will pick one photo out of 100+ that might be 'decent'. A lot of people who take photos not just for personal family type photos, but who might be a step up say the same thing.

This is very common. I try to make it the last thing I look at before I snap the picture. I get everything set, say to myself, "this is it." Then I say (to myself again -- yes I do that too much) "Is the horizon straight?" Of course, it's not, so I make it right, and press the button.

When I get it home, I find it's still crooked but not nearly as much as it was before. So I take my favorite editing software and perform the critical "straighten and crop" option, then everything is right with the world. I grab my drink (Arizona green tea) and toast to my near-perfect photographic capabilities. Once I post it, noone ever knows (well, Mark does...he has that magic ball thing going that tells him everything about photography).

 

[DueyDooDah]

What software do you use? I have to rotate and then crop. and no 2 photos are the same

I use Photoshop Elements. It has the option to crop the picture at the same time you straighten, so it's a one-step process.