As we have learnt over the past few weeks, where you place your main subject in the frame is extremely important to obtain the best possible result.

High or low?

Sometimes the positioning of a person – high or low in the frame – helps to complement and enhance the expression of the face.

When the subject looks crushed and dejected – place it in the lower part of the frame.

Position the subject higher when pleasure or excitement give it “a lift”

Room to move

When the subject is in motion, special care is demanded for framing.

Leave space for the subject to “move into”. This parachutist is too closely framed. Also, the wrong format is used.

The subject is falling – give it somewhere to go. Try a diagonal to strengthen the suggestion of movement.

Very fast subjects often look more exciting if given ample space to enter.

Space to look into

This usually applies to living creatures – people, animals, birds, models, etc. It simply means make your subject “comfortable” when you put the four lines of the picture frame around it.

No creature likes having its nose jammed against a wall, so avoid this hen framing your portraits, etc.

The two most common solutions are:

Change the camera angle to leave ample space in front of the nose, and a little at the back of the head.

Frame the face closely, eliminating the top and back of the head.

Remember, this is only general advice to help beginners start thinking about better arrangement. If you want to learn about framing, position, lighting, etc for portraits, try studying the work of experts in magazines, at photographic exhibitions, even on the TV.

Camera viewpoint

Camera viewpoint is an important consideration when positioning a subject.

a) The photographer was standing at normal height to snap a child jumping off the ground. Result: ordinary

b) Photographer at ground level, subject is against the sky, and now it really looks airborne. Result: impact

c) A third approach could be to incorporate the child’s shadow as an important part of the scene.

The above are only three of many angles and approaches that could be considered. The choice is yours. There is no one correct way to take the picture.

Unusual viewpoints
The unusual viewpoint can work wonders at times. It can alter the mode of the picture completely and turn mundane material into a fascinating study.

Climb onto a fence or wall … up a tree or ladder … down a hole … lie flat and shoot along at ground level, or upwards.
Don’t worry about people seeing your acrobatic performances – they already know that all photographers are mad anyway!!

Many thanks to Brenda Amos, FAP, EFIAP for permission to use some of her sketches and writings from articles published by the Australian Photographic Society magazine Images in 1984/85.