A Scenic World

It recently came to my attention that I have no idea what the “rules” for photography are (thanks, Keith!). So today, I set out to find out just what these rules are – and break them.

After exhaustive research (read: I visited three websites – four if you count Ken Rockwell, who apparently doesn’t believe in “rules”), I discovered that the following are generally considered to be the general rules (via ezinearticles):

Rule of Thirds -If you draw two vertical lines, dividing your photo into thirds, then two horizontal lines the same way, the lines intersect at four points. Compositionally, elements in the photograph should fall at one (or more?) of those four points.

Lines – Lines should be used to direct the eye of the viewer. Diagonal lines are apparently stronger than horizontal or vertical lines.

Texture – This should be used to add depth to the photo.

Color – Hmm, this one should be self-explanatory?

Framing – Use the surroundings of the subject to help draw attention to the subject. A window would work, as would foliage, as would…a frame. Ha!

Contrast – Light subjects get dark backgrounds, dark subjects get light backgrounds.

Now some portrait-specific rules (via shotaddict.com):

Camera angle – Shoot from eye-level. Otherwise odd body parts can be exaggerated.

Composition – It’s best to not fill the frame. Leave space to the side of the subject. If they’re looking in one direction, leave space on that side.

(via johnharveyphoto.com)

Lens choice: 105mm and longer work best for portraits with an isolated subject. 70mm will also work.

Focus: THE EYE(S) MUST BE IN FOCUS.

So here’s my rule-breaking self-portrait:

Today we had my favorite flickr meetup to date. Today was World Wide Pinhole Day, so the Gainesville flickr group (David, Greg, Mike, Jennifer, and me) met up at Starbucks in the wee hours of the morning and headed off down 301 to see what photographic adventures would come our way.

Our first stop was The Orange Shop in Citra, a shop that has sold orange-related products from oranges grown, picked, and hand-packedfrom the orange groves literally surrounding the shop since 1936. The sign was classic:

and I got the classic “orange” shot!

From Citra, we headed north, going way off our map (printed from googlemaps, of course – who needs an atlas?) and eventually winding up in Waldo. A new cafe/gallery just opened there on April 19th, so we stopped to check it out. It’s a beautiful space with great lighting and delicious-looking desserts (I’m a dessert girl, but not before lunch).

Next it was farther north to the speed trap known as Starke. We dined on some fabulous food from Grannie’s Country Cookin’ before heading out to an abandoned motel that Greg had spotted a few months before: the Underwood motel.

The interior was everything you’d expect from a creepy, dilapidated, abandoned motel. Weeds grew everywhere, and the entire ground seemed to be covered with broken glass. Whole walls were gutted, and every mirror left was broken. In other words, photograph heaven, making my self-portrait of the day a rather easy task.

All in all, an awesome day.