Lesson 7 • FARTing, Composition, Camera Shots & Angles

Today, I will learn…

� FARTing

� Composition guidelines

� Camera shots

� Camera angles

� Ground plane

Learning Goals

What would you do differently?

Farting

FARTing

� The best photos are taken when you FART first

� FARTing helps us remember to make a strong,

meaningful photo instead of just snapping

away and winding up with a lot of boring,

thoughtless snapshots.

FARTing

� Feel

� Ask

� Refine

� Take

FARTing

� FEEL:

� Something has caught your eye and you want to

capture it; freeze this moment, person, or object in

time.

� Most amateur photographers will just shoot

anything

� Try to associate an emotion/feeling with your

photographs.

FARTing

� ASK:

� Stop and ask yourself exactly what it is that made

you stop in the first place to take a photo

� Is it a bold color? Is it a crazy juxtaposition? Is it the

wild light? What is it, exactly, that made you want

to take a picture?

� You should try to capture what is that made you

stop in the first place!

FARTing

� REFINE:

� Try to capture just what it is that made you stop; think about how you will compose your shot in the frame.

� If it’s a single colour of a door handle, don’t be a wimp, fill the entire frame with it!

� Making refinements about what goes into your photo will make for a much better composition; eliminate what doesn’t need to be included

� Ask yourself, “Does this really add to the photograph”? If not, get closer, or move to the side, do the shuffle, something!!

FARTing

� TAKE:

� This is the easy part;

� Take the darn picture!

� Make sure you’ve adjusted the exposure

settings and white balance correctly.

� If not, refine again, and take another!

CompositionSimplicity, SEX, and Balance

Composing a Good Photo

� Composition can be a difficult thing to grasp

in the photography world.

� We’re all tempted to just get shooting and

don’t stop to think about what really needs

to be in the camera frame…

Composing a Good Photo

� Read the article “Composition: Simplicity, SEX, and Balance”

� Assignment posted on Edmodo

� In your own words, answer the questions related to the

article in a Word document (or Pages or Google)

� Submit your answers via Edmodo

� Due: End-of-lesson

Practice

� Practice your composition skills;

� Take photos of objects, buildings, people;

anything that catches your eye

� Move around; think about your composition

and how you position your subjects within

your camera frame

� Experiment with different aperture settings

(to get different DoFs), and shutter speeds

(to capture motion blur)

Camera Techniques

Camera Techniques

� Deciding what to shoot is just the beginning

of a photographer’s job. How a subject is

shot is just as important.

� By using different techniques, shots, and

angles, the photographer can manipulate the

mood and meaning of a photograph.

� The following are some techniques used by

photographers to tell stories through images.

Camera Shots

� The apparent distance between the camera and the subject can greatly affect the overall message conveyed by a picture.

� How you fill the frame is the shot

� For Example….

Extreme Long/Wide Shot

� Wide shots can create a sense of objectivity; you hardly see people

� There may be more detail to look at and the objects may be small.

� The distance between the subject and the camera seems large, creating a less-intimate feeling.

� These shots give the viewer a good sense of the setting of the picture.

Long/Wide Shot

� Long shot will have the subject filling most of the frame without cutting-off any part of the subject.

� For example, a person’s entire body

� Framed head to toe

Medium/Mid Shot

� This shot is popular with advertising and sports photography because you can see all of the main subject and some background detail;

� The audience is little closer to the subject

� Framed head to waist

Close-Up

� Close-ups invite a sense of shared feeling and intimacy, because the subject is isolated.

� When the subject is a person, the viewer is focussed on the body language and facial expression;

� Typically framed as head to shoulders

Extreme Close-Up

� A specific facial feature or object fills the frame to ensure the audience focuses on a certain facial feature to emphasise emotion, or an object to demonstrate its importance

Camera Angle

� The angle from which a picture is taken can greatly effect how the viewer feels about a subject.

� When a photographer places a camera at eye level, the viewers see the shape and proportions of the subject as they normally would.

� Changing the angle can suggest different meanings to the audience…

High-angle

Bird’s-eye-view/Aerial

Eye-level

Low-angle

Worm’s-eye-level

Worm’s-eye-view

� The camera is placed on the floor/ground, and can give the audience the perspective of how the world looks from the lowest possible viewing point

Low-Angle

� This is when the camera is placed below the subject so the viewer will feel like they are looking up at it.

� This makes the subject feel “larger than life”.

� The subject can look like it is looming over its surroundings, giving it a sense of power.

High-Angle

� The photograph is taken from above the subject, so the viewer feels like they are looking down on it.

� The image seems smaller than its surroundings

� This is used to emphasize space and distance, can also make the subject appear to be smaller, weaker

Bird’s-eye-view/Aerial

� Can really demonstrate and emphasize distance, size, and space

� Entire environments, places, cities, etc. can be captured from a high vantage point

Glossary Creation

� Create your camera shots glossary:

� For each camera shot and angle discussed, photograph your own example and add a

description in a Word Document

Camera Techniques

Shots

Shot or Angle Name

Description and why it might be used.