street photography

a photo study: rule of space

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Nikon D750   f/4   1/160    190 mm   I00 ISO

Ted Forbes notes that the rule of space offers the photographer a way to create a sense of motion, activity or conclusion within one’s composition and that it simply involves creating negative space that relates to the subject within the image.

For example, if you place negative space outside your subjects head in a portrait, you imply maybe there is thought going on – particularly if you direct your subject’s eyes toward the negative space.

Or if you have a picture of a motorcycle zooming across the desert. Placing the negative space in front of the motorcycle creates a sense of direction or implication of eventual destination

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Nikon D750  f/4.2   1/400   45mm  100 ISO

It is my thinking that Ted Forbes’ discussion dovetails nicely with Raj’s Xdrive photography lesson about a photograph speaking.

a “good picture always speaks out its story…The story the picture is trying to broadcast is nothing but your vision or an intent or a message you are trying to convey to the viewers.

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Nikon D750   f/14   1/80   32mm   100 ISO

Thank you for taking the time to visit; and as always, I would love to read your thoughts about the interconnection between story and space as photography composition tools and any images you would like to share.

Hope you enjoy Ted Forbes’ Rule of Space video.

this is, because…

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This is, because that is.  This is not, because that is not. This comes to be, because that comes to be. This ceases to be, because that ceases to be…This is like this, because that is like this.

~Thich Nhat Hanh, The Heart of the Buddha

time-lapse of an apple blossom transforming

a photo study: tempo

wpc_friendTempo as a composition element within photography is an extension of Ted Forbes’ discussion of rhythm…the beat…the pulse within images. He notes that tempo is the means by which we display speed, movement, as well as the passing of time all within a frozen moment.
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Within the comment section of the YouTube video , Tempo in Visual Composition and Photography, Ted Forbes furthers his discussion by noting that

tempo is different than the ‘rule of xxx’ stuff. Every photo has a tempo—a pace at which the elements relate to one another. This is simply becoming conscious of these relationships and learning how to vary the pace of the images you create.

Speaking of music within composition, here is a blog by Moss and Fog who offers us a video that is “a fascinating experimental film by Marcin Nowrotek [who] combines 3D footage of jazz musicians and 3D animations to create a video that brings amazing depth and physicality to the screen.”  Enjoy.

As always, I would love hearing your thoughts and seeing how you understand Ted Forbes’ discussion of tempo within photography.

weekly photo challenge: a face in the crowd

The human body speaks…very loudly through its postures and movements.  More and more I’m finding that photographers who create street images from perspectives other than direct portraiture opens me to ponder individual humans stories that speak through the body’s emotional expressions which often are distracted from by a smile, an eye glimmer, a hair cut, a style of dress, etc.

images submitted in response to Erica’s photo challenge:  A Face in the Crowd