It’s been sooooooooo long I can’t remember when I first started relying on my fifteen point protection plan, checking my four corners, and making sure I paid attention to my borders to guide me through the process of creating strong images before I clicked the shutter. I can tell you that it’s been thirty-four years since I first shared these concepts with my fellow photographers that took my first Maine Media Workshop in 1983.
I continue to work these concepts into my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshops I conduct around the planet. Now there’s one more I recently thought about when I was shooting an environmental portrait, but had never really thought about sharing it with others.
It was in an environment where I couldn’t move the subject or change anything. It was filled with obstacles that could easily get in the way of what I was trying to achieve in the camera. Or having no other choice, one where it would either take a long time to fix so it would look natural, or one I couldn’t fix at all; given a reasonable time table.
I went through my photo process, which by the way now takes me a very few seconds. As though I was outlining the woman in pencil I quickly ran my eye over her entire outline to see if anything was growing out of her head or in a really bad position. Remember that this was a ballet rehearsal in Cuba and I had absolutely no control other than having her glance over her shoulder at the lens.
When doing this I could make adjustments by moving one way or the other to get her where the area around her was free and clear, and avoiding unnecessary time in front of a computer that may or may not have been successful.
So the next time you’re out shooting people give it a try. Let your eye become a pencil and draw an imaginary line around the person, looking for potential problems. You’ll thank me for it later!
Visit my website at: www.joebaraban.com, and follow me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/barabanjoe. Check out my workshop schedule at the top of this blog. Come shoot with me sometime.
JoeB