A photograph is two dimensional. The subjects that open their doors to our lenses are three dimensional. To convey depth, use tricks that allow photographers to wind up with an image that portrays dimensionality. One way to achieve this is to include compositional elements that provide a sense of scale in the picture. Use objects of known size so the viewer can make a connection between them and the surrounding environment. It gives the viewer a point of reference from which he or she can understand how big or small everything else is in the photo.
The Key Element: While a blue sky, glorious, wide open landscape prompts oohs and aahs from those who witness the scene live, they rarely provide the landscape photographer with a striking image. The reason being is they lack depth and scale. The quintessential example is the Grand Canyon shot from many of the overlooks. To overcome this short coming, find a natural item in the environment to include in the foreground and viola, the photo now has depth. Try to place it so it frames the background and doesn’t merge with the key elements. Its inclusion allows the viewer to compare the rock, tree, fallen log, etc. to the rest of the picture and as a result, nets an image that tells more of the story and has more impact.
The Contrast: The key here is to find a single element that produces a WOW from the viewer that provides a sense of scale so he or she is left saying, “That is amazing.” For instance, highlight the baby elephant in and amongst the herd of adults to show just how much smaller the babies are at birth. Find the flower that’s just breaking ground compared to the mature ones around it. As described above, find a lone tree in an expansive landscape and feature it in the foreground.
Take a look at the first photo that accompanies this article. Including the foreground tree in the lower right gives the viewer a point of reference from which to draw a conclusion as to the immensity of the dune. Without the tree, one is left wondering whether the image is a close up of a sand castle formation or a tall desert dune field. In the second image, it’s evident just how expansive the field of flowers spans in that when it was shot, I got very close to the most foreground grouping . As the eye travels through the image and follows the line of flowers, it shows depth. It also lends an appreciation as to the size of the background rock due to the depth that’s depicted in the field of flowers. In the hot air balloon image, based on the size of the foreground one, in that the one can draw a conclusion using scale to the the distant flighted balloon, a conclusion can be drawn as to just how high up the air born one is.
To learn more about this topic, join me on one of my Photographic Nature Tours. Visit russburdenphotography.com and click on the NATURE TOURS button for more information. Also, pick up a copy of my new book, Amphoto’s Complete Book of Photography. You can purchase a signed copy directly from me or visit your local book store or Amazon. Contact me at rburden@ecentral.com to order your signed copy.
