Breaking The Rule of Thirds
January 24, 2010
Using the rule of thirds comes naturally to some photographers, but for many it takes some time and practice before it becomes second nature. But once it does become second nature you will see an overall improvement in the photographs you take.
You will recall that the purpose of the Rule of Thirds is to think about what the point of interest of the photograph will be, and to place that point of interest along one of the lines or where the lines intersect. In other words, you purposely place what you want your viewer to see first using the rule of thirds as you compose your picture.
Break The Rule
Rule of 3rds Misapplied
Like all rules, sometimes you need to break it. For example, look at the photo on the right. The photographer has obviously applied the rule of thirds by aligning the subject of the photo along the vertical line in the right hand third of the frame.
The problem here is that the left hand side of the photo is stark white with nothing in it. Therefore, while the subjects draw your eyes to them the blank space to the left is very distracting. In addition the photograph is overexposed.
When To Break The Rules
Some rules are meant to be broken, and ignoring this rule does not mean that your photographs will be uninteresting or unbalanced. On the other hand, a wise photographer I know told me that if you are going to break a rule you better learn the rule well first!
Sometimes placing the subject of your photograph in dead center can make a lot of sense and produce a very powerful image, in particular when you are taking portraits, where the subject of the photo is looking directly into the camera lens.
Another example might be when you are taking a group photo, or you simply want a landscape photo say of your home or farm, then ignore the rule and simply center the image in the frame. In this situation the image will fill the frame and the whole image is the focal point of your shot, not anything specific within the shot.
Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!
Betty Muscott, Child Photographer
The Rule of Thirds
January 23, 2010
As you begin to explore photography you will be confronted with a lot of technical terms which may tend to make you think photography is too difficult and will take more time to become good at than you care to spend. The truth is that spending a little time learning the basics will not only let you get better photographs, but it will bring out creativity in you that you may not realize you had.
The Rule of Thirds
The Rule of Thirds is also known as the “Golden Rule” of photography and, while not an absolute requirement or necessary, will still help you create more interesting photographs in most cases. The rule of thirds is a rule of thumb arts and designers use when creating their work.
The rule states that an image should be imagined as divided into 9 equal parts by placing two equally spaced lines horizontally and vertically through the image, and that the most interesting parts of your composition should be placed along one of these lines or at the intersection of 2 of them.
Help The Viewer Interact With Your Photo
Studies have shown that when someone first views a photograph their eyes will naturally go to one of the intersecting points rather than the center of the shot. In other words, applying the rule of thirds has this natural way of viewing an image instead of working against it.
Notice the two photographs below and observe how the image on the right is more interesting than the image on the left:
 Simply Centered |
 Using the Rule of Thirds |
While both children are doing similar things you can easily see that the photograph on the right has more interest to it than the one on the left. The most common kind of photographs taken are similar to the one on the left, however, as you can see simply taking a little time to understand composition and applying the rule of thirds can result in a much more interesting and engaging photograph.
You Want Your Photos To Be Interesting
After all, when friends and relatives come over to visit one of the things most of us do is bring out the photo album or fire up the computer to show them recent images of our family and kids.
We are all waiting to hear those “ohhs and ahhhs” when they look at our photographs. Another benefit of learning a bit more about composition is that we begin to create images that harken us back to that moment in time we snapped the photo, and it helps us record the history of our child or family.
So, the next time you are taking pictures image the grid you see on the left while composing your photo and try and create an image like the one on the right – you will be pleased with the results!
 Rule of Thirds Grid |
 Baby Under A Blanket |
Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!
Betty Muscott, Child Photographer
Valentines Day Is Coming
January 22, 2010
It’s almost upon us – Valentine’s Day. Everywhere I look I see pink and red, hearts and flowers. The candy makers are in full swing with their advertising, and the minds of gals are filled with thoughts of romantic times with their significant others.
Candy and Flowers
The only problem with candy and flowers is once they are gone – their gone! Not only that if you have kids there is always competition for the candy, and if the gift is flowers then you need to take a photo of them before they wilt and die.
Oh, sure, you can take one of the roses, stem and all, and press it into a book while later adding it to your scrapbook. But flowers are biodegradable, and soon enough will wither into dust.
So What To Do?
Well, pink is the theme of the day, so let me suggest a Cannon pink digital camera
Even if you have another camera or two around, this is one that is sure to please. It is about the same size as a deck of playing cards, can slip easily into any shirt pocket, or can be carried by a strap on your wrist.
It produces beautiful images, is easy to use with lots of shooting modes like Auto, Program, Portrait, Foliage, Snow, Beach, Sunset, Fireworks, Aquarium, Underwater, ISO 3200, Indoor, Kids & Pets, Night Snapshot, Digital Macro, Long Shutter and Movie. Yep, that’s right – you can even take movies with this slick little camera.
A Camera For All Occasions
With all of those shooting modes you will always be prepared for any occasion, and it comes with all of these items:
- PowerShot SD1200 IS Digital Elph Body
- Lithium-ion Battery Pack;
- Battery Charger;
- Wrist Strap;
- Digital Camera Solution Software CD-ROM For Your Computer;
- USB Interface Cable To Connect To Your Computer;
- AV Cable To Connect To Your TV.
The Right Color
It even comes in the right color!
Cannon Pink Digital Camera
If you need more information you can check out my review of this camera at Cannon SD1200 IS Camera Review.
Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!
Betty Muscott, Child Photographer
Enter This Online Baby Photo Contest Now
January 21, 2010
When you are enjoying taking photos of your adorable baby, you might be thinking of capturing that smile and those sparkling eyes to look back on in the future. You are probably not thinking about paying for college and scholarship funds. But now you can combine the two with the latest online baby photo contest.
The Regis and Kelly Baby Contest 2010 offers a scholarship fund worth $125,000 as first prize, something that could make your baby’s future education secure and save you a lot of worries. And you have a chance of winning that prize. The deadline is the 29th January at 5pm Eastern time, so you have eight more days to capture the perfect shot of your beautiful baby.
While the photo contest is about how cute your baby is, an important factor is your skills as a photographer. Judges are not looking for professional studio portraits, but they do look for good complimentary lighting, good composition and sharp focus: all the things that show off how cute your baby really is and make a satisfying portrait. They also look for photos with an intimate happy feel, so if you can capture your baby in a happy mood relating directly to you behind the camera, you are on the right track.
This contest is for children from the age of 6 months to 48 months on January 5th 2010. You must be resident in the US or Canada.
Guidelines for the photo itself state that the photo must be recent, taken within the past month. It must not have been taken by a professional photographer, but you may use lighting and photographic techniques to get the best photo possible. If you are submitting a photo to this contest, check the format and size requirements first. A simple precaution like this will make sure your photo gets through to the judging stage and has a chance to win.
So look through all the photography tips on our site, take a quick online photography course, grab your camera and your baby and start photographing now. You could win a fantastic prize and, even if you don’t win, you’ll have a beautiful selection of photos to put in your baby album and remember these precious times forever. Look out for other baby photo contests to enter your best photos into, as there are several more worth entering. Just make sure that you don’t enter the same photo into more than one competition, or it could be disqualified. If you take plenty of photos you should get loads of great ones and plenty of choice.
Mum and Photographer
Natural Light
January 20, 2010
Earlier I spoke about light and how important light is in photography, and that one thing that will help you improve your photography is to understand light, and figure out how to use light. Without light there would be no photographs, so it is important that you learn how to use light correctly.
Right along with light comes learning how to use the natural props around the child you want to photograph. This is known as properly framing your photograph. For example, in an earlier photograph I shared with you a young girl was outdoors with light falling on her hair and the background was blurred.
This meant that the subject of the photograph would immediately draw your eyes to her and the background would not compete with the subject. But sometimes you can use the background to make the photograph more interesting, in particular if you could include the proper use of light.
Framing The Photo & Using Natural Light
Take the photograph on the right. Here, a young girl is sitting on a chair looking out a window holding a white lace curtain in her left hand. Behind her the background is dark, but the light falls on the subject’s face and knees creating a lot of interest for the observer.
Notice how the subject is slightly left and above the center of the photograph. This is using the rule of thirds (which we will discuss in another post soon) so that as soon as you see the photograph your eyes are brought to the child’s face. The photograph holds your interest and you then can take in the rest of the image giving you a feeling of peace and gentleness.
Framing your shot properly and taking into consideration the natural light that is available will help you produce interesting and beautiful photographs of your children that will take you back to the place and time where you shot it.
Remember, keep taking lots and lots of photographs of your kids. You will be glad you did!
Betty Muscott, Child Photographer
Put One Of Your Own Special Photos On Canvas For Valentine’s Day
January 19, 2010
Valentine’s Day is just over three weeks away now and if you don’t want to resort to last minute flowers and chocolates as a gift for your loved one, now is the time to start thinking about that special gift that will make their heart glow. When you’ve got young children it can be hard to keep romance alive, but your shared love of those wonderful kids is the glue that holds you together, through sleepless nights and stress, as well as the joys that they bring. The perfect gift for Valentine’s Day could be a gorgeous picture of your young family, celebrating your love by putting one of your own photos of you all on canvas.
There are plenty of other personalized photo gifts that you can create with your photos and many romantic ones too, but a canvas print is one of the most enduring of all. A good quality canvas print can outlast you, its image remaining bright and sharp for a hundred years, so that your grandchildren can still enjoy it. A beautiful photograph of your family, perhaps a mother and baby picture or an informal group of you all, will encapsulate all the love you feel for your family and keep its memory alive for the next generations. How much more romantic can you get than that?
You still have some time left to look through all your photos for the perfect shot, or take a brand new one if you can’t find anything that feels just right. The last day to order for standard shipping is Feb 2nd if you go through Photoworks.
So start thinking about setting up the perfect portrait of your family. Do you just want a portrait of the kids together, or do you want to be in the photo with your partner too? A tripod will make it perfectly possible to set up a photo using the self-timer, but otherwise enlist the help of a friend to take the photo, once you have worked out how you want it. Small kids get bored of having their photo taken very quickly, so make sure you decide on the background and look at the lighting before you get them involved.
Once you have grouped yourselves get your friend to take lots of shots in quick succession and try out some variations. Having everyone looking at the camera and smiling is the obvious arrangement, but try out others too. Attract the kids’ attention and have some photos of you all interacting and looking at each other rather than at the camera. It gives a wonderful intimate feel and can be fun if you get them laughing too. Experiment. Don’t just limit yourself to one session. Try different days and different locations until you get just what you are looking for. You are capturing a mood as well as a likeness, and moods can change from day to day.
Then choose your best shot and put it on canvas for a wonderful Valentine’s gift.
Mum and Photographer
The Look Of A Photograph
January 18, 2010
Before you start your journey to capturing great images of your children you first need to know how those great photographs look. You can start by browsing the internet and looking through the portfolios of some of the professional child photographers. This will give you a sense of what great photos look like.
But don’t be discouraged as you look at the images and think that it is impossible for you to take some for yourself. Rather, just spend a few moments and try to understand what about each photograph attracts your attention. Where did your eyes go when you first saw the image? Other than the child, was there anything else in the picture?
Depth Of Field and Selective Focus
Notice in the photograph on the right how the light falls on the subjects hair, and how the background is blurred. Your eyes are immediately drawn to the subject and nothing distracts you from understanding the point of this photograph, does it? Simply paying attention to lighting and the background can improve your photographs.
Now that you have an idea of what a great photograph looks like think about how you can photograph your child. You don’t have to know everything about your camera to make a huge improvement in your photography. You don’t even need an expensive, complex digital single lens reflex camera with all the bells and whistles.
Even if all you have is a simple point-and-shoot camera that limits your choices you can still learn how to use the functions it has to create better photographs. In the beginning exposure, depth of field, settings like aperture and shutter can befuddle you. But over time, with a little study and practice, you too can learn how to use these things to create wonderful photographs.
Over time we will discuss all of these items, but for now just learning to see light better and working on composition will yield amazing results in your photography. Learning camera techniques will allow you to get the photos you envision and prevent situations that result in poor photographs.
Until next time take lots and lots of photographs of your children – you will be glad you did!
Betty Muscott, Child Photographer
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