The Enthusiast's Guide to Composition

The Enthusiast's Guide to Composition

by Khara Plicanic
Released September 2016
Publisher(s): Rocky Nook
ISBN: 9781681981321

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Book description

If you’re a passionate photographer and you’re ready to take your work to the next level, The Enthusiast’s Guide book series was created just for you. Whether you’re diving head first into a new topic or exploring a classic theme, Enthusiast’s Guides are designed to help you quickly learn more about a topic or subject so that you can improve your photography.

The Enthusiast’s Guide to Composition: 48 Photographic Principles You Need to Know addresses what you need to know in order to shoot great images with powerful compositions. Chapters are broken down into a series of numbered lessons, with each lesson providing all you need to improve your photography. In this book, which is divided into nine chapters that include 48 photographic lessons to help you create strong compositions, photographer and author Khara Plicanic covers lens selection, light, color, lines, movement, and more. Example lessons include:

  • Consider the Rule of Thirds
  • Make Things Pop with Contrast
  • Find a Frame Within the Frame
  • Add Depth with Foreground
  • Keep an Eye on the Sky, and Watch the Clock
  • Setting the Scene
  • Go Get the Shot
  • Make Sense of Maximum Aperture
  • Finding (or Making) Soft Light
  • Cull Like a Pro

Written in a friendly and approachable manner and illustrated with examples that drive home each lesson, The Enthusiast’s Guide to Composition is designed to be effective and efficient, friendly and fun. Read an entire chapter at once, or read just one topic at a time. With either approach, you’ll quickly learn a lot so you can head out with your camera to capture great shots.

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Table of contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Chapter 1 A Few Fundamental Concepts
    1. 1. Fill the Frame
    2. 2. Consider the Rule of Thirds
    3. 3. Repeat, Repeat, Repeat
    4. 4. Lead the Way with Lines
    5. 5. Make Things Pop with Contrast
    6. 6. Create with Color
    7. 7. Dramatize with Black and White
    8. 8. Add to Your Image with Negative Space
    9. 9. Strive for Balance
  3. Chapter 2 Kicking It Up a Notch
    1. 10. Change Your Point of View
    2. 11. Find a Frame Within the Frame
    3. 12. Compose Responsively
    4. 13. Add Depth with Foreground
    5. 14. Tilt the Horizon
  4. Chapter 3 Choosing a Format
    1. 15. Composing a Horizontal Image
    2. 16. Framing a Vertical Scene
    3. 17. Shooting in a Square
    4. 18. Consider Your Crop
    5. 19. Keep Intended Use in Mind
  5. Chapter 4 People and Places
    1. 20. Gear Up for Landscapes
    2. 21. Get a Deep Field of Focus
    3. 22. Think of Portraiture as the Opposite of Landscape Photography
    4. 23. Frame and Crop Carefully
    5. 24. Put Your Subjects at Ease
  6. Chapter 5 Layering Your Coverage
    1. 25. Capturing Details
    2. 26. Catch the Happenings
    3. 27. Setting the Scene
  7. Chapter 6 Getting the Shot
    1. 28. Know Your Focus Modes
    2. 29. Direct Focus with Focus Points
    3. 30. Get a (Proper) Grip
    4. 31. Go Get the Shot
    5. 32. Let Go of the Camera
    6. 33. Pre-Focus Your Selfie Shots
    7. 34. Sharpen Your Sense of Timing
    8. 35. Understand the Effects of Shutter Speed and Aperture
    9. 36. Understand the Basics of Exposure
  8. Chapter 7 The Skinny on Lenses
    1. 37. Choose a Focal Length
    2. 38. Make Sense of Maximum Aperture
    3. 39. Experiment with Novelty Lenses
  9. Chapter 8 Seeing the Light
    1. 40. Warm Up to Hard Light
    2. 41. Finding (or Making) Soft Light
    3. 42. Keep It Ambient, or Add a Dash of Flash
    4. 43. Find Direction
    5. 44. Understand That Light Has Color
  10. Chapter 9 Everything After
    1. 45. Manage Your Files (Like a Boss)
    2. 46. Back Up for Safekeeping
    3. 47. Use Good Tools and a Tight Workflow
    4. 48. Cull Like a Pro

Product information

  • Title: The Enthusiast's Guide to Composition
  • Author(s): Khara Plicanic
  • Release date: September 2016
  • Publisher(s): Rocky Nook
  • ISBN: 9781681981321