For this paper photoshoot, I tried multiple techniques to add dimension and dark contrasts by using a torch, a bright light, and multiple different coloured lights like blue and red. This all helped to link my work to my artist research as their photos also have that contrast to make the light brighter.

Artist Research

Francis Brugiére

Francis was an American photographer, born in 1879, and died on the 8th of may 1945. He was born in San Francisco, and became a photographer along side also being a painter and a musician. Later in life, Brugiére moved to London to start a new film. His work can be summarised as a plain piece of paper folded and cut to create a unique pattern of interesting shapes and forms. With the use of light, his work is seen to have a contrast of both light and dark pieces featured. The colour is edited to be a monochrome tone, to make the main focus on the contrast and to take away any of the other distractions. The use of line is highlighted in his images as the paper creates various lines heading in all sorts of directions, which creates a detailed effect. Lastly, Francis uses a zoomed in camera technique to capture the curves of the paper without including the background of the images. By not including this, it helps present the work as a sole focus on the paper design and no other distractions.

Photoshoot plan

In order to do this, I will use a dim-lit room where I will be able to take images using a bright torch to show the contrast of light. I will also need to cut up some paper to create the same effect Brugiére does as his paper is full of various shapes and patterns to create a unique look. I will also make sure to have a backdrop so nothing in the background will be seen when taking these images.

Contact Sheet

My Best Photos

For my best photos, I uploaded my images onto Lightroom and colour coded the ones I thought were the best (green), the ones that were okay (yellow) and the ones I wouldn’t use (red). As you can see, there ended up being a wide variety of images with different colour codes. This makes it easier to figure out which ones I like, and which ones I don’t so I can edit the good ones on photoshop.

Reflection on the photoshoots:

Overall, I think these photoshoots were a great way to experiment and discover which lightings were the best, and which images accurately matched the artist research’s work. Although, I took multiple photoshoots as some of the images turned out blurry the first time since the camera movement was shaky, making the image also look shaky. The use of the different coloured lighting made the vibe of the image completely different, as the bright white light made the images look neat, whereas the red lighting made the images look dark.

Editing

I demonstrated 3 different ways to edit these images, as there are various ways to upgrade your images to enable them to look the best they can be. My first edit is black and white, my second edit is different ways of cropping, and my third way is slicing the image.

Edit 1 – Black and white

The first technique I decided to try was making all the images monochrome, to match the artist research. Like the artist, I ensured the white areas were bright when I adjusted the levels of the image, and I made sure the dark areas were pitch black. I like this editing style as it showcases the contrast very well, and it creates a neat overall look to the three images.

Edit 2 – Cropping

For my second edit, I decided to make a collection of different ways of cropping my images to present the most interesting section of them. I like this edit as it presents different forms of the images I took, to capture the different textures of the paper. The element of leading lines is strongly shown in these images as they guide your eyes from one side of the image to the other side.

Edit 3 – Slice

My last edit is slicing the image. I like these two examples of this technique, as they add a distraction to the image and they make the focal point based around the slices. Additionally, it adds an element of negative space as the focus is on the black lines, making the other sides of the image more toned down and muted.

Final Images

My final image is the first edit I created, as I feel as though it aligned with Brugiére’s work the best. On top of this, I also chose it as I feel like simple is better, as it doesn’t look crowded and chaotic.

Art Gallery

I uploaded my images into the art gallery where I was able to include these three images in a neat order. I like these three images as they represent contrast between light and dark very well, as you can the areas where the light was shining and where it was not. I also like the texture it shows as they have unique shapes in each image, but they still overall give the same vibe of contrast and texture.

Evaluation

Overall, I think I implemented Brugiére’s work into my own quite well, as typically his work is made from cut up pieces of paper – like mine. His work is more intricate, whereas mine isn’t as much as his is more cut up and set. However, the difference between mine and his work is that my work is more cool toned unlike his where his has more warm tones so to. improve my work, I would edit the colours to be more warm toned.

In photography, texture is the visual quality of the surface of an object, revealed through variances in shape, tone and colour depth. Texture can add vibrance and create intrigue in images which otherwise would be bland and uninspiring – it is also one of the formal elements.

The Formal Elements

The formal elements are characteristics or information displayed in photographs which creates interest in photographs, and including these in your work typically increases quality and leads to production of better images overall. These are as follows:

Light: This is used in images to highlight certain areas of an image to create a sense of importance on certain aspects, whereas a lack of light can be used creatively to create intrigue in photos. Whether or not the light is natural or artificial can also be used to show clear artistic intent in images.

Line: Objects or parts of an image that act as lines can create direction in a photograph to highlight certain areas, or they can be used to outline and highlight important parts as well as showing movement or energy.

Repetition: Objects, shapes or lines in a photo can be repeated to create rhythms or patterns in an image.

Shape: Geometric or organic shapes can be used in an image which will stand out due to being easily identifiable, which can be used in conjunction with repetition to create simple but effective photos.

Space: Negative (empty) space can be used alongside positive (full) space to add depth to a photograph or make it more shallow, which could be used to highlight objects in the foreground or background.

Tone: A range of tones (light to black) can be used similarly to light to highlight parts of an image as well as affecting the mood or atmosphere as an image; for example, darker tones create a dull mood which when intentional can be used to capture a strong effect in photographs.

Colour: Colours can be used to add life to images and create vibrant moods, and can also be used to highlight certain aspects due to some colours being more dominant than others.

Photographer Research – Francis Bruguière

Francis Bruguière (15 October 1879 – 8 May 1945) was an American photographer who experimented with multiple-exposure, solarization, original processes, abstracts, photograms, and the response of commercially available film to light of various wavelengths. Some of his most famous photos are experimenting with light and the texture of paper to manipulate the image into being abstract.

Above are two of Bruguière’s images which I find to be effective. He has created shapes with paper and experimented with different levels/angles of light onto the paper to explore how it will affect the presentation of the images in terms of its texture – these images also make very effective use of the formal elements, for example there is a wide variety of dark and light tones which blend together nicely alongside the low aperture softening the focus on the background to create an abstract effect as well as a sense of intrigue to the image. Furthermore, there is clear use of lines but they are slightly out of focus and instead of directing focus or highlighting certain regions of the image they are present all over the image whilst simultaneously not being overused which helps strengthen the abstract effect further as everything mixes together smoothly to make it hard to pinpoint one clear subject in both of these photographs.

Photoshoot Plan:

I decided to focus my photoshoot on the texture of paper, taking inspiration from Bruguière’s work to try and create paper shapes and using the lighting of the photography studio to explore how manipulating the light will affect the quality as well as the degree of abstraction in the image produced. I also wanted to try include aspects of the formal elements into my images to try and produce more effective and fascinating final images.

Post-Photoshoot Refining and Selecting

After the photoshoot, I imported my images into Adobe Lightroom so I could begin my review and selection process to identify poor photos (flagged as X), good photos with improvements to be made (yellow and 3 stars) and photos which I found were most effective and wanted to edit and refine for my final piece (green, 4 or 5 stars).

Above are 3 images I found weren’t effective and flagged as X. I feel these photos aren’t great since I didn’t properly adjust aperture the way I planned to in order to highlight texture, and it turned out to be out of focus too – furthermore, I feel these don’t use the formal elements effectively since for example the texture which was my main focus of this photoshoot hasn’t been shown clearly and the lines of the paper don’t highlight some regions and instead are just present without really contributing to the mood these images are trying to build.

Above are 3 images I found were improvements compared to others, but at the same time weren’t my best images – after experimenting with settings and identifying weaknesses in previous photos, I adjusted settings further and found that it was producing more of the effect I wanted it to (the 3 photos above were all taken at ISO 200, f/stop 4 and shutter speed 1/20 sec) and also managed to capture these images more in focus which improves the overall quality. I also found the formal elements were being displayed more clearly here, since in the first and last image displayed I used a light from a phone to manipulate the shadows and dark tones into highlighting the texture and in the middle image I experimented more with lighting to try and achieve an abstract effect and although it was semi-successful I found it to be too underexposed and out of focus to use it as one of my final best images.

Above are 3 images I found to be some of my most effective and selected to edit and present in my final piece. By this point I had done lots of experimenting with the settings and lighting so I was able to capture these images exactly how I wanted to in my pre-photoshoot plan, and also captured them in focus (except for the middle one which has some intentional line blurring to highlight texture in the background). I believe these images are ones that use the formal elements most effectively out of all my images.

In the first image, I decided to use my phone light rather than the studio light after some experimentation to cast a shadow of the paper onto the wall as well as using this light to highlight the texture of the paper itself, and I also captured the paper in a way where it acts as a leading line to the part of paper sticking up which acts as the subject of the photograph due to most of the photograph being 2D and flat whereas this aspect of it is sideways to show dimension and depth. In editing I will crop the image to focus more on the right half since that’s where the subject and main focus of the photo is as well as adjusting shadows and brightness to explore the effect this will have on the lighting and texture.

In the second image, I used a line of paper in the foreground but also intentionally captured it out of focus so the main subject of the image is still on the texture of paper in the background, which stands out due to me positioning the lighting in a certain way to clearly highlight it. In editing I will crop the image to focus further on the texture as well as experimenting with gradient overlays and contrast to see what effect this will have on my photo and the intention behind it.

In the third image, I aimed to focus more on capturing the formal element of lighting effectively by positioning my artificial lights and paper in a way where there would be a range of light and dark tones due to the projection of the paper’s shadow. I also found there was effective display of texture on the paper as well as lines from the bottom right towards the top left which lead to the shadow, clearly contrasting the dark and light tones. In editing I will experiment with cropping, because even though I like the raw photo as presented above I want to see if manipulation of the image in terms of cropping and composition will strengthen the atmosphere created by the other formal elements.

Image Editing and Manipulation

Below is the first set of my edited images after experimenting:

After this, I decided to manipulate my images taking an alternative approach with gradients to see what effect it would have on the photos, the formal elements as well as the ideas behind each photo.

Below is my second set of edited images:

Final Images – Creation

Below is my final set of edited images:

Final Presentation

Evaluation

On the left is a photo from Francis Bruguière and on the right is one of my final images. I think I was able to replicate Bruguière’s use of the formal elements, most notably the visible differences between dark and light tones and subtle lines which create space and contribute to the composition – however, unlike Bruguière, I have used mostly negative space to present my dark tones which means the paper doesn’t fully fill the frame and therefore it does take away from the abstract effect.

ISO is used to determine how much light is let into your camera, and is useful when trying to make your images look neat. A high ISO is typically used for low lighting, as it can make your image look more clean, but can also make your image look noisy if you aren’t on the correct ISO needed for the image. Whereas, a low ISO is usually used for a light lit image, so it doesn’t look noisy. An image can end up looking noisy if you are using a high ISO when it’s not needed (like if your image doesn’t have low lighting).

In the image above, you can see that the high ISO makes the image look grainy and noisy, which isn’t ideal when you want a clean look for your image. To prevent this, you need to ensure the lighting is good and that you are using the right ISO.

My Contact Sheet

These are the images I took to show the contrast in lighting and the ISO difference by increasing and decreasing the ISO number.

I put the two images above to present a change in ISO and the lighting, so you can see each stage of the process.

I also decided to include this image above as I feel as though it represents the noisy ISO that we are usually trying to avoid in our images. As you can see, the lighting isn’t the best in this image, and the ISO number is on the lower side making the image not look the best it can.

Brendan Austin

My Response:

This was my first photo but I don’t think it matched his style enough so I took a few more at different angles.

These photos were better as they matched his style more and looked like a terrain sort of thing.

Editing:

Final Photo:

Francis Bruguiere

Bio

Born the youngest of four sons into a wealthy San Francisco family, Francis Bruguière was interested in painting, poetry, and music, and became an accomplished pianist. Upon his return from Europe, where he studied painting, he met Alfred Stieglitz at the 291 Gallery in New York and soon took up photography. While studying with Frank Eugene (Smith), Bruguière joined the Photo-Secession. Although he returned to San Francisco, Stieglitz published one of Bruguière’s photographs in Camera Work and included several in the ground breaking 1910 Photo-Secessionist exhibition at the Albright-Knox Gallery in Buffalo, New York.

Around 1912 Bruguière began to experiment with multiple exposures. In 1918 he published a book of Pictorialist views of his hometown, titled San Francisco. Soon thereafter, he returned to New York, where he opened a new studio, and began his famous series of cut-paper abstractions. In 1928 he moved to London where he designed stage sets and photographic murals. The later years of his life were spent mostly in New York, where his attention turned increasingly to painting and sculpture.

image 1 image 2

Overview of the photos

I like these photos because of there abstractness. The cuts in the paper are so random and the cropping she has done to the photos are so effective in hiding what the photos actually are.

Light

With the use of light, which travels through the cuts and folds of the paper, Bruguière has managed to create two alluring abstract photos and it is difficult to formulate what the image is. In both the photos, it’s the light catching the paper that creates patterns and textures that travel across the photo in the form of light and shadows.

Colour / Value & Tone

The monotone prints remove any distractions of colour and draw your attention to the tonal values created by the light and shadows.

Balance / composition

Within the first image, you can see the darkest shadows through out the frame. The random shapes in the photo creates diss balance to the image and draws your attention to the mess of textures and tones in the centre. The sharp, cuts and decorative detail of the paper sits largely in the centre of the frame, with softer light travelling to the top right and bottom left corners of the frame.

Camera techniques

The aperture of the camera allows for a sense of depth through the image, particularly in the photograph. Your eyes are drawn to the sharp folds of paper in the foreground, in contrast to the soft multi tonal background 

My Response:

Strongest Photo Selection:

I took the image into Lightroom and did some editing and this is how it came out.

Further Editing

I then cut and cropped my favourite 8 photographs and edited them this is the sheet of them.

This is the images separately:

I used art steps to see my photos in a gallery in real life this was a final step to presenting my photos.

Photoshoot 2

Aaron Siskind

This one of his photos helped inspire me to take similar photos with paper the amazing textures of the rotting wood make the photo really amazing. The photo is taken with a dead pan angle which makes it look unreal, you cant tell what the photo is. The fact its in black and white also pulls out the dark and light tones.

Aaron Siskind was an American photographer whose work focuses on the details of things, presented as flat surfaces to create a new image independent of the original subject.

These are my best 6 photos:

Here is them separately:

Jaroslav Rössler

Jaroslav Rössler was a Czech photographer. He was a pioneer of Czech avant-garde photography and a member of the association of Czech avant-garde artists Devětsil. Today he is considered an important exponent of Czech modern photography and avant-garde art. He often photographed objects against stark backgrounds, or used long exposures, to reduce subjects to their elementary lines and geometric shapes.

In the first photo he uses paper to create geometric shapes using the shadows and the light. the lines are straight and sharp causing the photo to look neat and put together by him.

However the second photo looks more natural and has no significant shape, you wouldn’t be able to tell what it is unless someone told you.

Formal elements.

LINE:

Objects in the photograph that act as lines, they could be straight curvy, thick or thin. They could create different effects on the photograph.

SHAPE:

Shape elements are often found in photography in the form of patterns. There are two basic types of shapes: geometric or regular and organic. Geometric shapes are – circle, square, triangle ect.

SPACE:

positive space is the actual subject while negative space (also called white space) is the area surrounding the subject. E.G a boat in the middle of the sea.

This is an example of when space is used in a photo, it highlights the tree as that is the boldest part of the photo

REPETITION

Repetition in photography refers to the technique of integrating recurring elements, patterns, or themes in a composition to produce a sense of rhythm and balance in an image.

In this photo, the repetition of the pillars helps makes dramatic rhythm

TEXTURE

texture helps role in adding depth and a tactile dimension to images by emphasizing the surface quality of the subject.

The detail/texture of the lizards skin makes the photo have more depth, as the image is highly focused.

COLOUR

Colour in photography plays a major role in composition, affects balance, and determines the weight of visual elements. Bright colours, for example, are perceived as happy, fresh, and joyful. Dark colours may evoke sadness, fear, or repulsion.

This photo of a sunset is really nice to look at as the many different colours energise the photo. The composition in this photo helps create the mood. it also creates a lot of visual contrast.

VALUE/TONE

In any painting, photograph or design, the area of highest contrast between light and dark will always demand maximum attention.

As this photo would also look good in colour, the tone makes a nice silhouette of the horse and the tree, it helps highlight them in the photo. The tone also creates visual interest to engage the viewer.

My paper photoshoot

This is my contact sheet. I’ve colour coded it so I can easily find the photos which I prefer. All of these photos are taken by myself. I went into the studio and used the ring lights to help create the shadows which helps add effect to the photo. I used a table with a white background and placed my cut up paper and put it into different shapes.

This is the presets, which helped me quickly auto edit my photos.

Strongest Images:

Soft focus / Long exposure photos:

This is my photos before editing

Editing:

This is the before and after of my soft focus photos. I cropped both of the photos and enhanced the contrast and the tone to make it look better. the tone helps create visual interest and helps set the mood of the photo.

Sharp Focus:

Editing

I edited this photo however I don’t like it as the ISO was too high, making the photo too grainy / too much noise.

I edited this photo into black and white, therefore next to my other photos they will look neat.

I really like this photo as its clear and has no photo noise. This is before and after editing one of my photos. I have changed the colour of this photo to black and white. The variations in tone in this image also allows the elements of shape, texture, and pattern of objects to be distinguished.

My Final Photos.

TEXTURE

This is my contact sheet for texture, i added them all into Lightroom and edited my favourite ones.

Ive added a collection on Adobe Lightroom and called it natural forms texture.

This is the presets, which helped me quickly auto edit my photos.

I edited this photo 3 different times.

1. the first photo I added a monotone overlay and then adjusted the brightness and saturation. The black and white stops people from getting distracted by the colour of the photo
2. I added a gradient map, colour overlay then adjusted the contrast, brightness and saturation.
3. On the third photo I changed the colour balance and added some blue tones, however it looks quite dark and hard to see the details.

before editing

After editing.

Line

Line in photography refers to utilizing lines to generate visual appeal and communicate a message within an image. Lines can be utilized to guide the viewer’s focus, establish a feeling of distance, and even suggest motion. 

Shape

Patterns are frequently seen in photography as shape elements. They can be utilized to highlight a specific section of the frame as well. Different shapes can be used to establish a stark difference between the subject and the surrounding area. These are only a few examples of the possible applications. 

Space

Space in photography refers to the gap between objects and their surroundings in a photograph. It can be utilized to add dimension, highlight an item, or focus on a specific aspect of the arrangement. 

Repetition

Using the same design element multiple times, such as a shape, line, color, tone, or texture, can be a valuable tool in the composition of both fine art and photography. Using this one element repeatedly can be utilized on its own or together with other elements to form designs, which can then be adjusted to produce a rhythm. 

Texture

The appearance of an object’s surface, showcased by differences in form, shade, and depth of color. Texture adds vitality and liveliness to pictures that would seem dull and uninteresting otherwise. 

Colour

Three characteristics of color are hue, value, and saturation. Hue is a basic term used to denote color, such as blue, red, and yellow. The brightness or darkness of a color is known as its value. Saturation refers to the strength or vividness of a color. 

Value/Tone

Tonal value in an image describes the brightness or darkness of a color. It is crucial to differentiate various components in the photo and to establish a feeling of depth. 

Edward Weston

Edward Weston is a pivotal figure in 20th-century photography, renowned for his ability to transform ordinary objects into visually arresting compositions through careful attention to texture, form, and light.

Weston is most famous for his still-life studies of natural objects, such as seashells, vegetables, and landscapes. He worked primarily in black and white, using large-format cameras to capture extraordinary levels of detail. What set him apart was his commitment to presenting subjects with clarity and precision, which allowed viewers to see familiar objects in entirely new ways. This is where texture becomes key in his work.

Texture as a Visual Language: Texture in Weston’s work acts almost like a language , conveying more than just what the object is, but how it feels, its weight, and its materiality. This was particularly effective in his portraits and nudes, where the texture of skin becomes a focal point, bringing out the softness and imperfections that make each subject unique.

Lighting and Depth: Weston’s mastery of light allowed him to accentuate texture. Whether photographing sand dunes or the rough bark of a tree, his controlled use of light created a strong sense of depth. Shadows played a crucial role in defining textures, giving the objects dimension and life.

lighting plays a crucial role in how texture is perceived in photography. Different lighting setups can either enhance or diminish the visibility and impact of textures in your subjects. Here’s a breakdown of various lighting techniques and how they affect texture:

1. Natural Light

Soft Diffused Light: On overcast days or in shaded areas, the light is soft and diffused. This type of lighting reduces harsh shadows and can make textures appear smoother. This is ideal for capturing the subtle textures of skin or delicate fabrics, as it minimizes the risk of unflattering shadows.

Direct Harsh Light: Direct sunlight creates strong contrasts, accentuating textures and details. This is effective for subjects with rough surfaces (like bark or stone), as it brings out the details. However, it can also create unflattering shadows on smoother textures, so it’s best used with care.

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2. Side Lighting

Texture Enhancement: Side lighting, where the light source comes from the side of the subject, creates shadows that define and accentuate textures. This technique is often used in portrait photography to enhance facial features and in still life to bring out the texture of objects.

Example: When photographing a crumpled piece of fabric, side lighting can cast shadows in the folds, highlighting the texture effectively.

3. Backlighting

Silhouette and Edge Definition: Backlighting occurs when the light source is behind the subject. This can create silhouettes and emphasize the edges of textured subjects, but it might obscure finer details unless the subject is translucent (like a leaf).

Example: A backlit leaf can show intricate veins and textures if the light shines through it, but a backlit rock may lose its details.

4. Top Lighting

Flat Texture Effect: When light comes from above, it can flatten the texture, making it less pronounced. This is often useful for creating even illumination in food photography, where you want to show the overall look of a dish rather than its texture

5. Low Angle Lighting

Dramatic Texture: Low-angle lighting can create long shadows and enhance textures dramatically. This is especially effective for landscapes or architectural shots, where the texture of the ground or building surfaces is emphasized.

Example: Photographing a rough stone path at sunset with low-angle light can create long shadows, enhancing the texture of the stones.

6. Coloured Light

Mood and Texture Perception: Using coloured gels or filters can affect how textures are perceived. Warmer tones might make textures feel softer or cosier, while cooler tones can give a sharper, more clinical feel. Experimenting with coloured light can help you convey different moods through texture.

Photoshoot + PnX process to slim down options

Finalised Selection of Photographs

Shoot summary

In this series of images, my goal was to capture the intricate textures of the yellow pepper, onion, and lemon. To achieve this, I left them sliced open for a day or so, allowing their skins to dry and develop more pronounced wrinkles and edges. This added an organic, tactile feel to the subjects, which is a nod to Edward Weston’s approach of emphasizing texture in his work. By letting the surfaces age slightly, I could highlight the roughness and imperfections, which contrast beautifully with their smoother interior sections.

I used hard side lighting across the series to accentuate the edges and ridges of the fruits and vegetables. The strong light source really made the textures pop, casting shadows that enhance the contours and fine details of the dried surfaces. It was essential to bring out those natural lines and depth, giving the objects a more three-dimensional quality.

To add a sense of freshness and visual interest, I coated the vegetables, fruit, and the wooden surface with water. This created a dynamic reflection and added to the textures, balancing the dryness of the skins with a sense of moisture and life. The water coating helped elevate the visual impact by introducing contrast between the dry textures and the glossy reflections, giving the series a fresh yet natural feel.

Editing

Just like Edward Weston, I chose to convert my images to black and white, which further emphasizes the textures I wanted to capture. By removing the distraction of colour, it lets the viewer focus more on the contrast between the light and shadows. The monochrome palette heightened the details of the dried skin, the wrinkled surfaces, and the organic forms of the pepper, onion, and lemon. The lack of colour allowed the intricate textures to become the main focus, highlighting every ridge, crease, and line. This decision, inspired by Weston’s approach, helped enhance the sense of form and texture, making the photograph feel more dramatic and rough.

I also decided to turn down the exposure on the original image due to the artificial lighting of my lamp, the lighting is very strong and bright , and i wanted to add a more natural feel and diffuse the light slightly.

line

Lines are a great starting point when thinking about formal elements, as they are almost everywhere.

Start by looking for lines in your composition that can guide the viewer through your shot or to a specific focal point. These are known as leading lines. Your lines don’t necessarily need to be straight, horizontal or vertical; they can be curved, angular, or random too. Angular lines that converge into a central point, commonly known as a vanishing point, will add perspective to your image. Think of how a straight road or railway line naturally disappears to a central point on the horizon – this is a classic example of a vanishing point.

Shape

Regarding shape in photography, this usually means a 2D subject outline. In contrast, form refers to a shape with a more 3D appearance. We’ve put these two together for this video as one formal element.

Effectively representing shape and form in your compositions can turn objects, landscapes and figures into defined, striking focal points. Using various lighting techniques, such as backlighting, silhouettes, and paying attention to shadows, will help elevate the shapes and forms in your shot.

Space

Building space into your compositions creates a sense of scale and brings added depth to your shot. It can also provide breathing room for your image’s main subject, allowing the viewer to focus on the scene’s primary features.

Adding space to your compositions is particularly useful with outdoor photography, where you may want to emphasise the scale of geographical features – such as mountains and bodies of water. However, you can add space effectively when shooting almost any photographic subject.

Repetition

Repetition in photography refers to the technique of integrating recurring elements, patterns, or themes in a composition to produce a sense of rhythm and balance in an image.

Pattern and repetition in photography hold the viewer’s attention by using strong repetitive elements. The patterns can keep the eye anchored or move it around an image using line

Texture

Texture in your composition can bring your image to life by giving the viewer a tangible connection with it, and is particularly popular in macro photography. You can draw textures out of all kinds of surfaces and environments. And to do this, you can use a wide range of lighting setups and shoot with a variety of depth-of-field.

Textures are ideal for experimenting – try different setups and see what you like. You can use flat light with the camera head-on to bring out the surfaces of a weathered wall. Or, use backlighting for ripples in dunes, shallow depth-of-field for intricate materials, and long-exposure to get the silky-smooth look of flowing water.

Colour

A prominent colour in your image whether it’s a concrete colour block or a set of similar colours that form a palette can make a bold statement in your shot.

Colours can also convey a mood to your image that will be emotive to the viewer. And you could also single out one particular colour to make a striking statement and have it ‘pop out’ of your shot.

Tone

Focusing on tone in your image means using variables of contrast and light and dark areas to bring depth to your image.

The tone is fundamental in black-and-white photography, where it should be used to guide the viewer through your image where there is no colour present to focus their attention.

Practice makes perfect when it comes to tone, and we recommend trying different lighting scenarios and contrast levels for your preferred aesthetic.

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Formal Elements:

• Colour
• Line
• Shape
• Space
• Repetition
• Texture
• Value/Tone

Colour

Colour is a phenomenon of light

It has 3 properties:

• Brightness
• Hue
• saturation

Colour creates atmosphere, contrast, vibrancy ect amongst images. It usually has the most immediate affect.

Line

Line creates a visual path across an image and it can be used to covey a message within an image

It can be used to create movement, direction, pattern ect

Shape

Shapes can be used to define an image and create focus points. Shapes can be used to make silhouettes by paying attention to shadows.

Space

Shape can add depth to an image and allow space around the main point of focus.

Repetition

Repetition allows an image to have balance and a sense of rhythm throughout.

Texture

Texture allows you to capture the colours, shape and movement upon the surface of an object.

Value/Tone

Value/tone in an image creates definition amongst different elements in an image and it can create a 3D affect.

ISO regulates how much light is allowed to enter your camera, determining the brightness or darkness of your photos. A greater ISO number signifies increased sensitivity and better light-capturing capability, resulting in potential graininess in the image. A cleaner image is achieved when a higher amount of light is required to properly expose the image, resulting in a lower ISO number. High ISO is typically ideal for low-light conditions, particularly when a quick shutter speed or a small aperture is needed to meet creative objectives. Texture in photography refers to the visual aspect of an object’s surface, which can be seen through variations in shape, tone, and colour saturation. Texture brings life and vibrancy to images that might appear boring otherwise. 

Exploring the effects of ISO:

I focused on using ISO for these images to create light and dark images. In both photos I had a set shutter speed on the automatic focus ,however I changed the ISO in both images ,so in the first photo I used a low ISO at 200 which created the shadows to appear darker. Where as in the second photo I used a high ISO at 800 which created a shine within the lighter parts of the image giving the photo a reflective realism.