What Makes a Good Photograph?
Four elements are common to all good photographs: simplicity, composition, lighting, and practice.
Simplicity is actually a deceptively difficult element to capture. What you as a photographer need to do is let the camera help you simplify the things you see in front of you. You begin with a very busy canvas (everything in view) and have to work to simplify by eliminating some of the contents. You can do this either by getting physically closer to your subject, or by using a telephoto lens to zoom in and crop the shot tighter. When you photograph a person, for example, photograph his or her face only, rather than the whole person.
Composition is equally important. An artist’s technique, called the “golden mean,” is to divide the picture into imaginary thirds both vertically and horizontally, like a tic-tac-toe board. Then, place the subject of the photo on or near those imaginary lines or their intersections. Study photographs that you like and You’ll see that almost every one has thirds that you can find.
Lighting is the third key ingredient. Photos that win competitions almost always show a skilled use of light. Try to photograph only at dawn, in the late afternoon, and at dusk, when the low angle of the sun produces rich, warm colors and long shadows. Avoid shooting at noon, a time when light is very “flat.”
Practice: Taking photographs that you like won’t take a lot of special, expensive equipment. But it will take lots of trial and error. Even professional photographers take many photographs of the same subject to get just one that they like. Remember, only practice makes perfect!
Copyright 1998–2007 Andrew Hudson for PhotoSecrets / Photo Tour Books, Inc. You may reproduce this article for personal, educational, non-commercial and non-Internet use, such as in a local photo club newsletter or school project. No Internet publishing is permitted. For commercial use, please email me for permission. This article was edited by Matt Wiseman and first appeared in Postcards Magazine, a publication for Carlson Leisure Group by Cowles Creative Publishing. Tips | photography books | Email
Comments
Reply by Tom
March 7, 2016
Hi Andy. Hope you don’t mind me calling you Andy, it makes me think of my pet chihuahua. Anyways, really enjoyed the post! Regards, Tom the locomotive steam train.
Reply by Andrew Hudson, PhotoSecrets
March 14, 2016
Thanks, Andy the pet chihuahua.
Reply by Anonymous
August 17, 2015
Thanks. It is encouraging to read that even good photographers take photos that are later discarded.
Reply by Anonymous
October 30, 2014
Thanks for the tips. I just have to win the photo competition.
Reply by CJ
December 4, 2012
Hi Andrew! I am a HH(Hard of Hearing) person, and limited when it comes to my job prospects. I am also a photography student. I want to thank you for telling us about stock photography. I never thought about doing stock photography until I saw this website. So, thanks! Keep the info and tips rolling out!
Reply by Andrew Hudson, PhotoSecrets
December 4, 2012
Hi CJ,
Thanks for the nice words. I am preparing some more stuff to add to the site.
Good luck,
Andrew
Reply by Kim
September 5, 2011
the information was very helpful. I love to do phogography and have been thinking about taking courses but put it off due to costs. I enjoyed reading your articles.
Reply by Andrew Hudson, PhotoSecrets
September 5, 2011
Thank you!