Student Work: Working on his Artist Palette

by Joe on July 22, 2023

Negative Space, Perspective, Tension, Pattern, Shape, Light, Color, Line, and a Silhouette..

I teach people how to incorporate the Elements of Visual Design into their photography as a way to create stronger images; images that will be remembered. Isn’t that what all photographers want? For their photos to be liked enough to be committed to the viewer’s memory?

I know it’s what I’m after, but that’s just me!

In my online class I teach with the BPSOP, and the “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshop I conduct around the planet, I use what’s referred to as my Artist Palette, and I have my students fill it with not pigment, but all the important Elements of Visual Design: Negative Space, Vanishing Point, Tension, Perspective, Pattern, Texture, Shape, Form, Line, Color, and Light.

I also teach a part II class with the school, and the above mentioned elements are reviewed, but we also spend additional time on Light (the most important element there is), Shadows, and Silhouettes as well as Line (the next most important element). For without Line, most if not all the other elements would not exist…nor would we!

Charlie, a student of mine from San Diego, recently completed my part II class and here’s two very strong photos that I especially thought used several elements from his new Artist Palette. In the first image his assignment was to photograph Line while keeping in mind the other elements on his new Artist Palette. A striking image that was all about what I call “Seeing Past First Impressions“, a term I often refer to in my workshops. Not only is their a great example of Line, but there are several other elements as well: Negative space, Color, Light, Shadows, and Patterns.

Can you see all of them?

In the second photo, Charlie was working on the different ways to light a subject as well as Tension. One of the ways to create Tension is by “Stopping an action and leaving it un-completed”. What’s also present is one of the basic concepts from the Theory of Gestalt I also teach which is Closure. Closure is all about “filling in the blanks”. Be sure to watch for my post on Closure later this month.