1. Guidelines to Better Photography “There are no rules for good photography, there are only good photographers” -Ansel Adams COMPOSITION

2. COMPOSITIONAL GRAPHIC ELEMENTS 1. lines & points 2. shapes & forms 3. contrast & tones 4. texture 5. pattern & repetition.

3. COMPOSITIONAL STRATEGIES 1. rule of thirds 2. balance of elements 3. leading lines 4. symmetry and Patterns 5. viewpoint 6. background/MINIMIZE 7. depth 8. framing 9. cropping or filling the frame 10. experimentation

4. COMPOSITIONAL RULES 1. What is the emphasis of the picture? 2. Is there visual movement (S-Curve)? 3. Is there visual movement (Leading Lines)? 4. Is the main subject matter placement out of the center? 5. Is there Unity ( golden triangle)? 6. Is there Unity ( golden spiral)? 7. How can you simplify the picture?

5. Cropping

6. Get close to your subject

7. Get even closer …

8. RULES OF THIRDS

11. Golden Mean Spiral

13. Golden Triangle

14. The Leading Line

15. Using Shapes

16. Pattern

17. The ‘S’ Curve

18. Viewpoint

19. COMPOSITIONAL COMPLEXITY THE MORE YOU OVERLAP STRATEGIES, RULES AND GRAPHIC ELEMENTS THE MORE COMPLEX YOUR MEANING WILL BE.