Slideshow teaches photographic composition using recognizable and self-taken photos. I use it with my media arts classes at the secondary school where I teach.

2. Expression

4. expression William Wegman‘Fay Ray’1988 John Wood‘Eagle Pelt’1985 Alanna King ‘Autumn Tree’ 2008

5. Experimental expression Philippe Halsman‘Dali Atomicus’ 1941

6. Documentation Tim King, 2004 William Warnecke, 1910

8. Principles of Art

10. Lines A mark made by a moving point. Has greater length than width. Directs the eye – horizontal, vertical, diagonal, curvy, zig-zag, etc. Can be actual obvious lines or the borders or edges of shapes.

11. Lines

12. PERSPECTIVE Photo by Lewis Hine

13. CURVED LINES are one of elements of composition most pleasing to the eye, giving a photograph a feeling a movement . . . by Henri Cartier-Bresson

14. ANGLE, AND DIAGONAL LINES: Choosing unusual angles can result in interesting perspectives on a subject. The use of diagonal lines can add tension, and a sense of directionality. Photo by Bruce Davidson

15. Shape/Form A contained area. Can be GEOMETRIC (man-made) ex. Square, triangle, circle, etc. Can be ORGANIC (natural) ex. Leaves, humans, puddles, etc. Shapes are 2-Dimensional and flat. (circle) Forms are 3-Dimensional with height, width and depth. Have shadows! (sphere) Used to create a sense of space and substance.

16. Shape/Form W. Eugene Smith, ‘Tomoko in her bath’ 1971 Edward Weston, ‘Pepper Number 30’

17. Space The area used or unused in a composition. Positive space – the area the subject takes up. Negative space – the area around, under, through and between. Gives the photo a 3-dimensional feeling. (Depth) Foreground (closest), Middle ground, and Background (farthest). Can be open, crowded, near, far, etc.

18. Space

19. Value Black and white and all the grays in between Dark to light Can add drama and impact to composition. Can give a sense of timelessness Train your eye to read colouras black and white!

20. Value Annie Leibovitz, ‘Willie Nelson’

21. Texture The surface quality. How an object feels, or how it looks like it feels. Rough, smooth, bumpy, gooey, sharp, etc. Adds interest! Sense of sight and sense of touch involved.

22. Texture Tim King ‘Stewing Currants’ 2008 Diane Arbus‘Woman with Veil on Fifth Avenue, N.Y.C’1968 Alanna King ‘Freya’ 2008

23. Colour Artistic term is HUE Need light to see colour. Use colourschemes to enhance appeal or make impact.

24. Colour Monochromatic Tim King ‘Devil’s Paintbrush’ 2009 Alanna King, ‘Eiffel Base’ 2009 Complementary Tim King ‘Bass Lake’ 2009 Analogous

25. What are the Principles of Art? Emphasis Balance Unity Contrast Pattern/Repetition

26. Pattern/Repetition An element that occurs over and over again in a composition. Can repeat the element in a consistent pattern. Can repeat the element in a variation of the pattern.

27. Repetition Examples

30. SYMMETRY Centering the subject by Robert Frank

31. by Sebastio Salgado

32. The tilted horizon in this sports photo would most likely mean it could never be published in a daily newspaper. Photo by Garry Winogrand

33. ASYMMETRICAL BALANCE: Whether consciously or not, compositions are often conceived away from the center of the frame, using the “rule of thirds.” Photo by W. Eugene Smith

34. Photo by Yosuf Karsh

36. Unity Unity is seen in a painting or drawing when all the parts equal a whole. Felix Nadar ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ 1820-1910

37. Unity Examples By Ansel Adams By Edward Burtynsky

38. CONTRAST Contrast refers to the opposites and differences in the work. You can achieve variety by using different shapes, textures, colors and values in your work.

39. JUXTAPOSITION The camera has the unique ability to capture two or more seemingly incongruous or paradoxical elements in it’s view. Photographers who take advantage of this can create ironic, even sarcastic statements. Photo by Margaret Bourke-White

40. Tricks for better photos Framing Rule of thirds By Margaret Bourke-White By Alanna King

41. ECONOMY: Fill up the frame, by moving around your subject, and moving in close. Avoid space between subjects and exclude details that are not relevant to the story. Photo by Sebastio Salgado

42. SIMPLICITY

43. by David Blumenkrantz

45. Consider angle at all times Photo by Arthur (Weegee) Fellig

46. SHOOTING FOR LAYOUT In certain instances, it may be possible to pre-visualize how a title may appear. The photographer can leave “dead space” in his composition, where the text can later be placed. MASTHEAD TEXT GOES HERE Photo by David Blumenkrantz

47. NO COMPOSITION? Some speak of an “anti-aesthetic,” arguing that one cannot do much arranging of light and subject matter with spot news. Others insist that experience is the only way to learn photojournalism; an innate sense of composition comes only from the alchemy of experience. Photo by Margaret Bourke-White

48. BAGHDAD, IRAQ - SEPTEMBER 12 (NOTE TO EDITOR : GRAPHIC CONTENT) Dead and critically injured Iraqi civilians are seen lying in the street on September 12, 2004 in Haifa Street, Baghdad, Iraq. Fighting broke out in the early hours of September 12, 2004 as explosions shook the centre of Baghdad with U.S. helicopters opening fire at targets in the area and a U.S. armoured vehicle was seen on fire. Over 20 people were killed and 48 injured in a day of heavy fighting more than two months since the handover of power in Iraq. (Photo by Ghaith Abdul-Ahad/Getty Images)

49. Suicide bombing in Israel, August 31, 2004. New York Times

50. Photo by Hans Gutknecht

51. ANTI-COMPOSITION: In the 1950’s and ‘60’s, street photographers such as Robert Frank and Garry Winogrand disregarded traditional concepts of composition, tilting horizons and creating images with no center of interest. Photo by Garry Winogrand