Image manipulation depends on first having a good-quality image to work from. While the internet offers a myriad of possibilities in the free image banks and stock photos available, more advanced designers may wish to work from their own photos. Learning how best to use a camera takes practice, but it’s well worth the effort.
Photography is more than just pointing a camera and taking a shot. Knowing how to use some basic tools and tricks can enhance the visual interest of your digital images. Having solid images to begin with helps build the foundation for creating new digital art.
1) The Rule of Three
The rule of thirds has been a basic component of visual artwork for centuries. By dividing the composition of your photograph into thirds, the artist or photographer creates balance and visual interest at the same time. Remember, the divisions are both vertical and horizontal. By keeping the main subject out of the center of the photo, movement and interest is created.
Image by codogblog
2) Bokeh
In Japanese, “boke” means blur or haze. Bokeh is the effect created with shallow focus, that keeps the subject immediately in the foreground in focus, while artistically blurring the background. Used carefully, bokeh creates bold imagery that brings a subject into the foreground in a way few other techniques can.
Image by Jsome1
3) Panning
Similar to bokeh, panning is a technique which leaves the subject in clear focus while blurring the background. Unlike bokeh, panning applies to a subject in motion, and is achieved by following a moving subject with the camera as you press the shutter release. With panning, the blur creates movement in the image. Advanced photographers will find panning a challenging technique.
Image by Tambako the Jaguar
4) The Golden Hour
The “golden hour” in photography actually refers to two hours; the hour just after sunrise, and the hour just before sunset. These two times of day offer the most dramatic and color-rich light available to photographers. Try taking photos of a single subject or landmark during different times of day to see the changes in the light.
Image by Liamfm
5) Silhouette Photography
Most of us remember doing cut-outs art of our silhouettes in elementary school. The teacher would have the children sit in the beam of a flashlight, and trace their shadow on a piece of paper. The paper is then cut out and pasted onto a background to create a snapshot of the child’s growth for the enjoyment of posterity and adoring parents.
Silhouette photography creates a striking, bold image by capturing the dark shape of an object blocking a bright light source. Using negative space, the photographer creates strong, crisp outlines of the subject. Silhouettes are often, but not always, taken during the golden hour. Here are two examples of beautiful silhouettes:
Image by Pawpaw67
Image by Tim Balogh
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Tom Chu works for PsPrint and PsPrint Blog. When he’s not sitting behind a computer, Tom likes watching sci-fi movies and Japanese cartoons, hitting the golf course and playing with his four dogs. You can connect with Tom via Google+ or Twitter. |
