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Looking Back
By: Mike Fox
What is the one thing that can ruin a good shot? Let's say you get the exposure just right, the composition looks perfect, the subject matter is awesome.
What could go wrong?
It's the background.
So many photographers, when composing a picture, look only at the subject, seemingly with tunnel vision. It is not just the obvious tree stump or post
sticking out of the top of the subject's head. It is the entire background that can be a challenge. It can be too busy, too cluttered, with too many
different colors or light variations, which, collectively can cause the subject to be lost in the photograph. Or it can be too bright, too dark, or too
interesting in itself, distracting the viewer's attention away from the reason the photograph was taken in the first place. So what can you do about it?
A few things.
Symmetry - where possible, make the detail in the background as symmetrical as possible. Aim to have the subject at equal distances between whatever
symmetrical lines are apparent in the background. For a more random effect, you can make the subject off-center to the symmetry of the background but
this must be intentional and does not work if the final image looks like it was an accident.
Asymmetry - maybe the background is wonderfully cluttered and messy. This can work well if the subject is very angular, neat, tidy - a juxtaposition. But you
will want to ensure that good lighting is falling on the subject and that the background is tuned out to some degree, either by being darker, or blurred by
limiting your depth of field.
Depth of field - writing about DoF, a very good way to tune out the background is to ensure the subject is at a good distance in front of it, then open up
your lens to its largest aperture (minimizing depth of field), and clicking away. This will put your subject sharply in to focus, and the background sharply
out of focus.
Change your position - take a look at the subject from a different angle. Looking head on is the most common approach to composing a photograph. But will
the background be better if you shoot from one side or another? Or how about going low and shooting upwards so that the background is largely sky.
Lens choice - wide angle lenses are inclined to include a lot of detail from the objects immediately surrounding the subject. This may be what you want out
of a photograph. If it isn't, consider stepping way back, changing to a longer lens, and focusing in from a distance on the subject. This will flatten the
perspective of the subject against its background and will help cut out the distracting object matter. This can be particularly helpful if the subject is a
distance away from its background, allowing you to also apply the Depth of Field tip mentioned above. This will really make your subject stand out from the
final print.
These are a few tips to get you started. Experiment and you will find others. Some photographers have styles that break all these guidelines (I don't call
them rules because that impacts creative thinking) which is fine. But when they first started to consider the subject of background cleanliness, they most
likely started with guidelines like those above, and evolved from there.
Happy shooting!
Mike Fox's Bio
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