Photography 101 in Fujairah—Composing Your Picture

Preamble
The Dubai Friday Shoot Out (FSO) group of photographers gathered in Fujairah early last Friday morning.

Alan Nambiar, one of Fujairah’s best photographers, gave an interesting talk on having an idea of what you want to shoot before you press the trigger.

After that the group was let loose with their concepts and their cameras on Fujairah’s Umbrella Beach.

This article addresses the concept of how the photographer chooses to compose a photograph.

Six Tips for Composing Your Picture

1. It is best to get your subject to stand still before you can shoot him.

2. It is harder to shoot your subject when he is running away.

3. It is much easier to shoot a crouching tiger.

4. Get your subject in the squat position. Remember, it is very easy to shoot your subject when he puts his arms up like a couple of wing nuts.

5. If you still can’t see your subject in the view finder, get him to stand by his car. In this case, if your subject doesn’t end up in the frame, at least you can say you were taking a picture of a car on a beach. In the unlikely event that you end up with no car in the picture you can say you were taking a shot of the Hajar Mountains.

6. The joy of composing good shots is evidenced by the way the photographer is turning his camera on anything that moves.

The thrill of composing your picture and shooting what you intend.

Further
Dubai Photographers Shoot Fujairah and the UAE East Coast, FIF, 15 January 2011.
Photos of Fujairah and Kalba that Tell a Story, FIF, 19 January 2011.

Geoff Pound

This article is also posted on the Fujairah in Focus Facebook Page.