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No matter what type of camera you use, from the simplest of compacts to the most expensive SLR or medium format camera, the impact and effectiveness of your shots will always depend on the viewpoint from which they were taken.
Lots of people take all of their shots from the standing position and very often from the straight-on view of the subject. This is ok if all that you want is a record snapshot of the person or place, but generally does not provide very interesting images. The best thing about using viewpoint to good effect is that it is one of those rare things in photography that is absolutely free! When taking shots of people, the viewpoint is important as it affects the viewer's perception and can either accentuate or diminish the prominence of a person's features. For example, the preferred viewpoint for shots of your children should be at their height or lower as shooting from adult level makes the child look smaller and often does not capture expressions because they may not be looking up towards camera level. I find also that they are more relaxed and cooperative too when adults come down to "their level". For the shot on the beach I lay down face to face and used a wide-angle lens. Men, especially for formal portraits, are usually best shot from slightly below eye level as this lends a slightly more "commanding" air. If your subject, of any age, has a prominent facial feature, viewpoint can emphasise or diminish its importance in the shot. See our previous tip, "Portraits", for lots of examples of this. When taking pictures of buildings, very often the building seems to be falling slightly backwards, especially when we try to include the top section. We can get a dramatic effect if we exaggerate this effect deliberately by getting down lower and tilting the camera even more. This can be done for the whole building or a selected feature of it. The effect can be enhanced even more by the use of a wide-angle lens, 28mm, 24mm or even wider. Harry's shot of the Casino is far more graphic and eye-catching due to the unusual viewpoint and camera tilt. Landscapes too can benefit from a different viewpoint. Lying down to include a foreground item will give great perspective to your image. Just be sure to maximise the depth of field, so everything stays sharp. (See last month's tip). The shot of the road below wouldn't be half as good if it had been taken from the standing position. The low shooting position in the tree shot, combined with the use of a wide-angle lens helps to emphasise the height the felled tree used to have. So get out there and start looking at things from a different angle, you'll be glad you did! Author: Peter Barriscale Discuss this article on the forums. (0 posts)  Some good advice there. |
