Composition and Making Your Image Look Great!

What is composition?

By composition, we’re referring to the arrangement of the elements in your image. You may not realize it, but having a well composed image plays into one’s subconscious. If your subject is out of place within your frame, your brain will know, even if you can’t pick it out.

There’s a science in the way a DP(Director of Photography) will set camera angles, dress sets and place their subjects to elicit a specific emotion. This is extremely important when we think of how we produce videos, even on a smaller scale.

What defines ‘good’ composition?

Defining good composition can often be subjective, but there are a few key rules to follow. Composition really begins with “Rule of Thirds”.

Imagine a traditional 16:9 frame. This frame can be spilt in 3 even parts both vertically and horizontally. For ‘good’ composition, your subject should be placed on one of the third lines. This creates space for your frame to breathe and is generally more pleasing to look at. In addition, orienting your subject for ‘headroom’ and ‘eye line’ is also important. Giving your subject enough room at the top, bottom and sides of the frame is important as to not cut them off, making the frame feel cramped or create unwanted emotion. All of this helps balance out the image and is what most would consider ‘good’ composition.

Interview Composition

Typically when setting up for an interview, there’s 3 ways to position your subject; frame Left to Right, frame Right to Left and Center frame. Each can be chosen for a number of reasons. Usually, you want to place your subject left or right of frame correlating to which side they’ll be looking or interacting with. If your subject is looking left, you’ll want them on the right third of the frame. If they’re looking right, they’ll be on the left third of the frame. This creates the natural illusion that they’re actually speaking to someone(often times they are) and sets a natural eye line. If they’re placed on the left side of the frame and looking left, they’ll just be looking at the edge of the frame which is uncomfortable for the viewer.

Another option is to place your subject in the center of the frame. This can be nice when trying to establish the setting or create a powerful look. This is also the method often used by YouTuber’s and vlogger’s, as it feels most natural when speaking directly to the camera.

As you may have realized, these positions really only refer to the vertical positioning of a subject, but what about the horizontal lines? This is where headroom comes into play. Once you’ve figured out what vertical line you want your subject to be placed on, it’s time to establish your headroom. This refers to the space in the frame above your subject. Having to little, or too much room will again, look very unnatural. Following our rule of thirds, placing the subject’s head on the upper horizontal third line will create the most natural feel.

Leading Lines

Another compositional technique is using leading lines. This is a method using human-made or natural lines that lead the viewer's eyes through a frame to the subject or the heart of the image. You often see this without even realizing it. It’s a great way for directors and photographers to frame a subject without needing to have them in the forefront of the image. This technique can also be used to subtly suggest the viewer should be looking somewhere else in the frame that may not be as obvious.

Final Takeways..

Following these basic rules of composition is an easy way to make sure your image is looking clean and natural. There are many methods to composition which we didn’t cover here that can be explored and practiced. Each one helps fill out your image and can be used for different reasons.

Of course, these rules can be manipulated depending on your creative style, process and again, emotion you’re trying to evoke. As we said in the beginning, composition, as all art is, is very much subjective. Playing around with placement of your subject in the frame can be a fun way to really make your image stand out. After all, rules are meant to be broken..