Varroproduction Photography

By now you should understand that taking better pictures relies most on how you compose your picture, not what camera you use. Buying a better camera will improve the result of your pictures, but that’s not the right end to start.

In part 1 of this guide I wrote about Form Value, and today I’m going to write about Message Value

Message value have a tight connection with Content Value. A picture can have a strong Message Value that speak for itself, but some professional photographers want peoples minds to work when they look at their picture, and they create a ‘weaker Message Value’ on purpose. Message Value can be translated in different ways. An advertising most of the time needs to be straight, the beholder needs to understand the message right away, otherwise the advertising is useless. People don’t stop for 10 minutes looking at an advertising picture thinking: What did the photographer mean by this picture?  There are ways to lead people into the picture and into the “story” of the picture. For example:

Excluding

By excluding unnecessary objects and people from the pictures. Objects and people who don’t belong in your picture makes the “story” less attractive. Try to make a clean shot, look at your surroundings and try to read it, what fits into the “story” I’m trying to tell the beholder of the picture.

Say that you are on your vacation with your friends and you want to take a picture of them on the beach, you would probably want to take the shot with the ocean and the beach in the background, or with palm trees for example. A picture taken when your friends lie on the sun lounges with soda bottles, sun cream and mp3 player laying on the table makes a messy impression to your picture. Try to EXCLUDE things that don’t fit in your “story”

Depth of field

Depth of field is a word to express how far there is acceptable sharpness/clear vision in front and behind the mainly focused object in your picture. This means that if you have a short Depth of Field the sharpness/clear vision in front and behind your mainly focused object is short, and Long Depth of field is the other way around. Compared to a dslr (digital single lens reflex) or system camera where you can do more advanced settings, low-end consumer cameras cannot do these settings so you have to take other ways.

To isolate your subject with short Depth of Field, try to zoom in as much as possible without passing the limit between optical and digital zoom. This will make your DoF(Depth of Field) shorter, and your main subject will be in focus and the background will be blurry. Try to experiment with this. If you make sure that there is a far distance behind your subject, you will experience the depth of field is shorter because everything behind your subject will be blurry, in fact the DoF will still be the same the only difference is that if you have a wall just behind your subject it will be sharp and the subjects background wont be blurry.

Happy or sad.

If you are trying to capture a happy moment, colors make the effect stronger. The same people against a concrete wall will give the opposite effect.

Capture moments

200 pictures where people pose and smile on every picture wont tell the beholder that much. Try to capture moments where people is engaged in something and when they are not posing. These kinds of pictures makes pictures speak for themselves.

Some examples:

This is a really bizarre picture, and if the beholder of this picture did not attend to this event he/she will have a lot to think of. Why is this young lady peaking this old man with a sword? Do they know each other? Is he forced to this? What is the purpose? I made the picture black and white to re-enforce the feeling that everything is not right. The picture suppose to be shocking. Notice that I placed her hand holding the sword in the rule of third.

The truth is that the old man is a fakir and the lady’s husband invited this fakir to her birthday, so this is just a trick.

This is a picture from the same event as above. Se how I EXCLUDED the background from the picture. I only wanted my two cousins to be in the picture and it gave a feeling of love between two sisters. The hair colors, makeup, dress, jewelery and their smiles talks to the beholder.

This also is from the same event as above, and also a cousin of mine. This picture would represent capturing a moment. Anyone can tell that this lady, had a great time on this party. The colors of her dress, hair ribbon and the pink added effect of the surrounding strengthens the feeling of joy. Also notice that I placed her head in the rule of third.

This might already be too much information so lets end it here. Try to use some of these tricks next time your photographing and you will have better quality pictures that speaks for themselves.

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Posted In: Photography techniques