Formula for Perfect PhotographWhat is your favorite camera angle? Is it top down? or is it 45 degree? Do you take photos in vertical frame mostly? or do you use horizontals more?
This post is about getting out of a rut.
Identifying a Pattern
Are you stuck in a pattern? Have you started using a "template"? Do you find your photos to be of a certain format? Have you started using a formula to take your photos?
If so, are you still an artist?
Each photographer has one or more styles, which can be understood by looking at their portfolio. A style is different than a pattern. In this context, pattern is associated with composition.
Photography is an art and cannot be mastered by using formula, template or set of instructions.
How to Break the Pattern
So if you are stuck in a rut, what do you do? How to break out of it? Here’s how.
You get into a pattern when you stop pushing yourself and exploring your subject. For your next photo try this:
When you start taking a food photo don’t stop after you think you are done. Take few more photos by changing the scene.
If you think you have taken lot of photos, turn the dish by 30 degrees or so and take some more photos. Did you try changing the camera angle? If you have been taking photos from sideways, did you try top view? Did you do the compositional dance?
Few things that you can change to break the pattern:
-
Placement of the dish in the frame
-
Proximity of main dish with the props and supporting elements.
-
If you have done all that, then turn the dish a little bit. And then some more. And further more.
-
As you do each one of the above, explore the scene with various camera angles.
Start doing the dance and becoming aware of your patterns. Get out of this compositional rut.
Further Reading
-
Within the Frame by David duChemin
Your Assignment
For today’s assignment, analyze your past few photos. Look at them, do you place your subjects in a certain place in the frame? Is the light always coming from a certain angle? Do you always use white plates? Is there a certain background that you always use?
Identify your pattern and then break it by taking your today’s photos in a different way that you usually do.
Tell Us About Your Pattern
Have you observed a pattern in your photography? What elements do you tend to use most in your photos? For me its usually lighting. I tend to keep the light on my right side and it has to do with the set up in my studio. What did you observe in your photography?
Photo by Domiriel
This is great advice. I often go through my past images to assess my images and get a sense of where I am headed artistically – and as I have been improving I am noticing a more distinct style forming. I wholeheartedly agree with your idea of changing things up when you get in a rut and pushing yourself – when I feel like it’s getting easy I know something is wrong because I’m not pushing my creativity enough.
One thing I experimented with recently was getting my camera off of the tripod and doing handheld for all my shots. I felt I had a lot more freedom to move around and try different angles and compositions – unfortunately my focus and noise suffered some without the luxury of keeping the camera still in one place, but it was a good method to practice and play around with composition.
I rarely ever use a tripod for the same reason as Jenn, the ability to move around but I would also add…I have props close by so that I can change them out such as for background. I have discovered changing a background can actually improve the photo. A lot of people use the same background and mess it up but that style, popular now, may not be later. It’s good to try to be different so that your photos don’t look like everyone else’s.
I have a LONG way to go to be considered any sort of food photo artist.. hah. Thank you for this great series, I definitely have a “template” (rut) that needs a little shaking up!
Love the mathematical formula for the perfect photo!
Thanks for the great post, Neel. It is definitely incredibly easy to get stuck in a food photography pattern (as well as in all kinds of other patterns in life). What helps me break out is shooting the same food two or three times, each time in a completely different setting, from a different angle, different plate, background etc. That usually means preparing the dish from scratch multiple times but I found it to be worth it.