Using Point of View Effectively
The components of a good picture include composition as well as light and form. By choosing where you put your camera, you can modify all these to tell your story.
Don't just walk up to a subject and take your shot. You give yourself more options when you walk around and look at the subject from all angles. Only after you have explored your subject should you select and shoot the best angle for the photo.
The perspective, or point of view you choose for taking your picture, can mean the difference between a photo that is merely a snapshot and a picture that involves and moves the viewer. It can definitely alter the scale of a picture and change how images and elements are emphasized and perceived by the observer.
You may need to move your camera only a few inches or a few feet to change the composition. Sometimes this means getting out of your comfort zone, literally shifting your point of view. Imagine being at a baseball game, photographing the pitcher from the sidelines. Choosing a low camera angle would emphasize the rise of the mound, while the rest of the setting — the field, the stadium, the surrounding scenery — would be a small part of the picture. Choosing a different point of view that takes in these other elements minimizes the impact of the pitcher's mound.
Ways to Alter Point of View
Shoot low. Lowering your camera to ground level creates a worm's-eye view that can suggest a subject is larger than it is. Outdoors, this can provide an uncluttered sky background. Shooting buildings from a low position will cause their lines to converge and make them look more imposing.
Shoot high. Shooting from a high angle will keep most or all of the sky out of your picture.
Horizontal versus vertical. The vertical/horizontal question affects the lines, the sweep, and the size of the sky. Vertical composition, by showing more foreground, can emphasize perspective. But horizontal composition, with a different foreground and a lower camera angle, does it, too. Always ask yourself which orientation crops out distractions more effectively.
FIGURE 12-3 The vertical lines of Trinity Church in Newport, Rhode Island, lead the eyes upward toward heaven, while the repeating horizontal lines form a pleasing subtext to the picture.
Even if you're limited to shooting from a single spot, you still have several options for your point of view. Placing the horizon very close to the top of the frame expresses the point of view that the land is large and the sky is small; conversely, a low horizon line will emphasize the vastness of the sky. Swinging your camera from right to left as you frame the photo also changes your point of view. In digital photography, you can take a series of photos from left to right in sequence, later stitching these images together to form an interesting panorama.
