Another Pic For Comments on Composition

[tarczy]

Learning the technical stuff of photography is fun and interesting, but COMPOSITION is what separates the men from the boys (or women from the girls . . . whichever the case may be). :)

Since I'm a newbie at underwater photography, I'm trying to "learn" great composition. Some people are lucky enough to be able to perfectly compose a shot every time. I'm more of a left-brained thinker - more inclined toward analytics rather than artistic composition. So, I need to "learn" composition because I am not gifted with an artistic eye.

Hence, all comments are welcomed and encouraged . . . complimentary or vicious . . . I learn from your critique . . . ;)

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i284/mongo255/Belize/OneEagleRay575x333px72ppi.jpg

[Jonathan Bird]

I give you a good score on that composition! Very nice! And well exposed too! I would be happy to call that image my own.

Keep in mind that photography is art, and while one can create an image that is pleasing to many people (thus would be considered to have "good" composition) there are no hard and fast rules. If you create an image that you like, then it is a good image to you, and that is the only person that matters in art.

Of course if you are trying to sell images, you need to create images that appeal to editors or art buyers, and that's different. But even then, the rules vary. For example, the kind of composition that lends itself to the cover of a magazine is not very good looking until you put the text on it. You have to leave a lot of negative space for the title, etc. So composition is often very much a function of what the image is trying to accomplish. It's very hard to look at an image and say "It has good composition because of X, Y and Z" or it has bad composition for some reason and if you did this or that, it would be better. I guess what I'm trying to say is that composition is highly personal and the "rules" are really just guides to help you learn the language of composition. Beyond that, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Jonathan

[Clay Coleman]

I really like that shot. The exposure on the ray is perfect by my eye--not easily done due to the huge disparity of reflectiveness between the ray's back and belly. I generally like a lighter background than shown, but the image as a whole has a great feel to it with the dark background. The image appears to have been lit by a single strobe, and the shadows created add to the mood. The only improvement to composition, in my opinion, would have been to get more in front of the ray and possibly a bit beneath it. Still, it's a great shot and thanks for sharing it. -Clay

[tarczy]

I really like that shot. The exposure on the ray is perfect by my eye--not easily done due to the huge disparity of reflectiveness between the ray's back and belly. I generally like a lighter background than shown, but the image as a whole has a great feel to it with the dark background. The image appears to have been lit by a single strobe, and the shadows created add to the mood. The only improvement to composition, in my opinion, would have been to get more in front of the ray and possibly a bit beneath it. Still, it's a great shot and thanks for sharing it. -Clay


Thanx for the kudos Jonathan and Clay!

Clay . . . it was all I could do to get the shot off in the first place. :)
I turned around and - BOOM! - there were two Spotted Eagle Rays comin' toward me. Trying to get lower and more in front of the Ray would've been impossible given the speed and the trajectory. So, I was left with this. Anyway, thanx for the compliments. More pics for critique comin' up.