Taking good photos is all about learning to see like an artist. Peter Burian shares six great tips to help improve your visual awareness.
If you’re a photography enthusiast you’ve probably received compliments on your work along the lines of "you've got a good eye" or "you must have a really good camera". The latter is definitely a fallacy. Even with artificial "intelligence", cameras can’t seek out the perfect lighting or subjects with great potential, and they can’t arrange the visual elements for dramatic or well-balanced images. Even the comment about having a good eye is questionable. As pro photographer Earl Nottingham says, "It’s actually a learned sense of visual awareness which enables you to quickly recognise a subject that lends itself to an exciting photograph."
Perhaps a few people are born with an innate ability to "see" like an artist, but for most of us, creative vision is a skill we need to develop. That calls for 'trial-and-error' experience, education and learning techniques from accomplished photographers by studying their work. As Nottingham concludes, the process "requires us to relearn the way we normally look at and react to things around us, much like a child seeing for the first time."
01 LEARN AND OBSERVE
Long before photography was even a dream, Confucius, the Chinese philosopher, made the following statement: "Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it."
That concept became self evident to me one day about twenty years ago when a friend and I were viewing our pictures from an outing to a British classic car show. My own images offered factual records of MGBs, Range Rovers, and a line of parked Rolls Royces. On the other hand, my companion had seen beyond the obvious. He’d sought out unique vantage points and graphic details – the distinctive shadow of a leaping jaguar against a crimson fender and colourful reflections in a chrome-spoked wheel, to name just two great shots. Motivated by his success and inspired by his commitment to "deep seeing", I tried again at an event a few weeks later.
After shooting a few frames which imitated his approach, I allowed my own style to surface. When viewing those photos later, I was much happier because the more creative approach confirmed that cars have an inherent beauty. Until then I hadn’t been able to capture it.
While visiting a palace in India with many of the typical “photo
ops” I wandered around for 20 minutes trying to find something that
would make for a stronger, more unusual image. Eventually, I found this
beautiful framing element and then waited until the right subject
entered the scene before I took the shot.
02 EXPLORE THE SUBJECT
Over the years I’ve received a great deal of advice from photographers whose work I admire. The most useful was offered soon after I bought my first SLR camera, by an instructor during a nature photography workshop. This exceptionally creative shooter chided me for trying to photograph every insect, bird and flower in the area. “You have to work the subject,” she’d say, trying to instil the virtues of patience and perseverance.
That’s good advice for anyone. When you find a photogenic subject, walk around to find the best vantage point and the most effective illumination. Shoot it from several angles, including a high and low viewpoint, against slightly different backgrounds, and with different focal lengths. Later, while viewing your photos on a computer monitor, select the ones you think are the most effective.
Instead of getting all caught up in “rules” of composition, it’s
important to develop a “good eye” – an awareness of the concepts of
effective visual design – in order to be able to make pleasing images.
For the best results, seek out the optimal viewpoint to achieve that
goal and shoot in light which is suitable for the subject.
03 EXPAND YOUR HORIZONS
If you’re shooting with typical lenses (say from 18mm to 200mm), why don’t you try shooting with an ultra-wide lens (10-12mm focal length) as a way of seeing the world in a fresh way?
Move in very close to your centre of interest to avoid including lots of unrelated elements. While composing your scene, notice how the foreground becomes dramatically prominent, while more distant subjects are rendered smaller than the eye perceives. For example, a nearby stallion looming in the viewfinder will appear larger than life in a photo while the more distant mares will seem much smaller, assuming a secondary role. Using this exaggerated near/far relationship, it’s also possible to make a small cabin seem more spacious, while a desert vista, or a sweep of wildflowers will become more expansive. This effect can make for an interpretive – instead of a documentary – depiction of reality.
Tilt the lens upwards and another trait becomes obvious. Vertical lines seem to converge or lean inward out of plumb, while the edges of the horizon bow upward. Typically, we want to avoid such “distortion” of lines. But in more creative image-making, aim for a dramatic effect. Try using an unconventional perspective: tilt the camera up on a steep angle with a group of tall trees or buildings or the interior of a stadium. 
For great visual impact, it’s worth finding scenes with bold,
striking colours, combined with illumination suitable for the subject.
For the most dramatic effect use the camera’s Vivid picture style or
modify the saturation, contrast and sharpness later using image-editing
software.
04 EFFECTIVE VISUAL DESIGN
A primary factor in successful photography is thoughtful composition – harmony, dynamic tension and effective image design. A badly composed photograph will lessen the appreciation of any picture, even if the viewer doesn’t recognise the reason. If you take a college course in fine arts, you’ll find entire semesters devoted to the many principles of effective composition. Tips on these techniques are also available in books and magazines.
For a three-dimensional “feel” in a two-dimensional picture, create a sense of depth. In wide-angle photos, include subjects in the foreground and the mid-ground and the background. (Some of the strongest National Geographic images use this technique.) Or try to find some object in the foreground to use as a ‘frame’ above or beside the primary subject. Unless you notice an obvious ‘framing’ object, you may need to explore the area to find one with some aesthetic value. Pleasing shapes such as archways, interesting brick work, colourful doorways or overhanging branches with blossoms can all be used effectively.
And when the scene has an obvious line, try a diagonal composition so the line runs from one corner of the image to the other. At a local market, place the lines of a stall on a diagonal, including colourful vegetables in one image area and the vendor in the other. With moving subjects, a diagonal composition has another advantage: it can help to convey an impression of movement or steepness. For example, for a photo of a motorcycle climbing a moderate hill, tilting the camera to make the incline appear much steeper can make for a more dynamic image.
There are many techniques you can use to add a sense of depth to your images. Here, the road leads our eye through the scene and into the distance.
05 OBSERVE THE LIGHT
One of the skills which distinguishes photographers from snap shooters is an ability to see and then solve lighting problems. Watch a photographer in a studio and you’ll notice he spends more time arranging the lights, accessories, and “soft boxes” than actually taking pictures. When shooting outdoors, away from a controlled environment of this type, we still have some control over the illumination. But this must begin with an awareness of the current conditions! When you find a beautiful landscape, the lighting will rarely be ideal at that that instant, or at the first spot you choose. Return to the scene when the sun is lower in the sky and find a shooting position which will illuminate the scene from the side, instead of the front or the back.
Many subjects and scenes work best when they are lit from the side, which creates pockets of contrast to emphasise texture. If possible, walk around your subject and watch how the light changes as you go from front to side and back lighting.
For nature close-ups or portraits, shoot in the diffused light of a cloudy/bright day. When you can’t wait for such illumination, shoot in a shaded location and add some light with a reflector panel or fill-in flash. And with foliage, try shooting toward the sun to make the translucent leaves glow with a beautiful shimmer.
It’s easy to shoot a beautiful – but typical – sunset photo in the
right conditions, but often the sun is too bright (not diffused by
haze). In situations like this, it’s worth looking seriously for
alternatives, observing the pattern of light and shadow, the line of
sand and water, and the texture emphasised by strong side lighting.
06 STRIVE FOR IMPACT
Watch someone browsing through a book of photos and one fact becomes apparent. Viewers are quick to evaluate the impact of a photo, flipping past those which fail to capture their attention! Unless your photo evokes some emotion, or offers a powerful visual statement, it won’t hold the viewer’s attention for long. After decades of saturation by television and the other media, we quickly tire of the standard ‘record’ shot which merely presents information. While the more subtle or “mature” images retain their aesthetic merit, it’s the graphic, stunning, or dramatic pictures which arrest and hold the viewer’s eye. Unless your work is highly personal, capitalise on this tendency for at least some of your photography.
Photograph children from their own level, pressing the shutter at the instant of a fleeting expression. Place a subject in a location with a dramatic background of primary colours. Ensure eye contact in portraits for a sense of intimacy. Anticipate and record the peak of any action at a high-jump competition. Produce an impression of motion in a still photo by using a long shutter speed for a waterfall, instead of freezing the individual droplets of water. Pan the camera along with a race car’s progress using a long shutter speed; ideally, the subject should be sharp while the background is streaked for a convincing motion blur effect.
This photo creates a sense of depth by including elements in the
near foreground, mid-ground and background. The image is helped by the
graphic nature of the subject matter and the lack of unrelated clutter.
An angular composition reinforces the drama of the image.
AND FINALLY...
In his book Within the Frame (Penguin Books), Canadian photographer David du Chemin says: "The most compelling images are clear and deliberate expressions about a photographer’s vision, of how he or she thinks and feels about a particular subject. A great image is the result of passionate intent, engagement with the world, and most importantly vision. Craft and technique play crucial roles, but it begins and ends with vision."
The assessment of any image as "good" or "bad", "dynamic" or "boring", is a highly subjective judgement. However, unless you shoot strictly for yourself, keep the interests of subsequent viewers in mind. Study the fine art or the photographs of those you most admire. Without resorting to imitation, develop your own strategies for effective communication. Even if you never intend to enter contests, these steps will help convey your message, satisfying a principal goal of any visual medium.
North American correspondent Peter Burian (www.peterkburian.com) is the author of several books including Mastering Digital Photography and Imaging and a number of Magic Lantern Guides to digital SLR cameras.
By 10am in this garden, the beautiful, warm, angled light we used
initially was gone. It became harsh and dull. As other photographers
packed up their tripods to leave, I decided to circle my favourite
tulips to find side and back lighting, and finally made this image.
Article first published in Australian Photography + digital magazine (June, 2013).