Good morning all. Today I wanted to remind everyone how easy it is to fall prey to complacency while shooting. The “OK, I got the shot, time to move on to the next location” mentality rears its ugly head when I am out shooting all the time. Sometimes I just need to stop and think about composure, lighting, shadows, settings, etc… The simplest thing to accomplish however is merely changing your Point of View (POV). By getting up high or getting down low, you can dramatically change how your picture looks. This effect is even more intensified by using a wide angle or fisheye lens. Take a look at the two images below. There is nothing very special about them; taken in Tuscany this past weekend in Bagno Vignoni – A historical town located on the ancient pilgrimmage route to Rome. But they do a pretty decent job showing you how much you can change the perspective of your photos by simply altering the plane/angle/composition of exposure.
These small pillars were only about two and a half feet tall, and I think they appear that way in the first photo. The little ravines and canals were built to channel warm water from the underground springs in to larger pools and holding areas for bathing.
By getting low on my knees, the composition changes completely, making those small pillars seem large and powerful, extending the shadow and making you feel just a tad small.
Anyways, just keep this in your back pocket next time you are out shooting. Variation in your photos is a good thing – it gets boring looking at everything from eye level sometimes!
looks like a scene from a movie like LOTR
The second shot is much more exciting than the first. Nice illustration!
Very good points sir. I have tried to make it a habit to shoot the same scene – or thing – at least 3 different times. Yeah it’s hard especially when pressed for time, but boy have I have been happy I did at times!
Images look great, looks like some fantasy world.
A.Barlow recently posted..Four In a Row
Just love the colors in these Adam!
You make a really good point and have illustrated it perfectly. This is normally one of the first things I tell people who ask how they can improve their picture taking.
Mark Summerfield recently posted..Elizabethton Covered Bridge
Well said and well documented in these two shots. The second one is dramatic. We really don’t have any excuses these days for not shooting enough shots – there is no greater cost in shooting two or twenty. And you can learn a lot by studying a shoot later on the computer and seeing how changing the POV changes the feel of the image. Great post
LensScaper recently posted..MountainScapes in Black and White
Excellent point, I try to do the same by looking at the same shot from different angles, being 6 ft plus I tend to look down at subjects. At times I will low crawl through weeds to get down and dirty so to speak for some macro subjects and to see things from a bugs eye view, great shots..:-)
Excellent point, Adam, of course. I have a very bad left knee (no cartilage) and wish bending down were easier for me. Sometimes I do it regardless and then stay down for awhile until I can get back up.
Ahh, that sucks!! I have some back/knee problems, but being 6’4″, I can quite a different perspective when I am high and then low
This is a good illustration, nice work Adam!
You illustrate a great point here Adam. I like pointing out that sometimes one will hear someone tell a child that they take such great pictures. I used to think that people were just being nice, and to some degree they are. Then I discovered that some children really do seem to have a gift. However, when they get older the complements stops. So I ask, what changed? The only difference is their POV. They are still shooting the same way that they always did but now their POV is 5’6″ above the ground, which is the same as Uncle Harry’s, and we all know about our Uncle Harry’s pictures.
Nice tips Adam, cool shots as well, have a great day
Points well taken, Adam. It’s easy to fall into a “standard” mode of shooting and moving on. Simply thinking about the scene and how you can create a shot that’s different from what people normally see is really important. Nice reminder, bud.
Your shots here provide a very nice example of how perspective works. Great shots by the way.
Jimi Jones recently posted..Revel Atlantic City
The one thing that has always bothered me with wide-angle lenses is the distortion (bending) of vertical objects in a composition. Thus, I try to get a different perspective without the wide angle view. Excellent blog site! Love your photography!
Thanks Peggy!