What do I find most difficult about creating a composition?

Thursday 21 November 2024, 17:17 by Nando Harmsen | 2,571 views | 0 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

Creating a composition is not the easiest part of photography. Even after writing two books about the subject, it remains a challenge. That is not a bad thing, as it keeps you sharp.

I went to photograph the comet. But with a good composition. Sometimes it is not easy to make the right choices.
Composition is the division of image elements across the frame so that it looks attractive. Sometimes this is easy, but more often it is very difficult. With landscapes, you have a lot under control, but certainly not everything. Other photography disciplines have different challenges.

Simplicity looks good, the art of leaving things out. Sometimes it is simply a matter of bringing something pleasing into the frame. If it looks good, it is often right.
Based on the books I have written about this subject, a kind of step-by-step plan has emerged. In theory, this should make a composition come about by itself. More or less.

The step-by-step plan could look like this: find a subject, decide how much of the surroundings you want in the frame. Then find the lines that connect the surroundings with the subject. I recently wrote a blog post about it. It sounds good and effective, but it is not foolproof.

There are too many rules about composition. That means it should always follow one rule or another. The difficult part is finding the rule that best suits the subject you have chosen. And the surroundings in which the subject is located.

All the rules are fun, but they cannot simply be applied while taking photographs. Maybe a step-by-step plan without rules is a good approach?
Being so intensely focused on composition rules does not make things any easier. It may even make things too difficult. I notice that I am not quickly satisfied with the composition. Sometimes I do not even take the photo anymore.

That is what I find difficult about creating a composition. You can no longer see the wood for the trees. You may even stop being satisfied with what a location has to offer. In fact, you become blind to what it is really about.

What is it about? A photo that is pleasing to look at, that radiates calm and is not too complicated. Sometimes it does not need to be so complex. Take your time, enjoy yourself, and then put what you see and experience into a photograph.

Finding a suitable location and viewpoint certainly helps you find a good composition. But always make sure the photo is pleasing to look at, and do not think too much about rules.
What do you find difficult about creating a composition? Do the rules confuse you? Can you not apply them? Or are you overwhelmed by the many image elements you have to choose from? Let us know in a comment below this post.

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