How to make a interesting photo

Depth.

It’s the key ingredient to take a interesting photo that draws the viewer in. The easiest way to think of a photo is in three parts. Foreground, subject and background. It’s how you intentionally use all three of these elements simultaneously to create a stunning composition in your images. It’s okay if you aren’t familiar with these terms. We’re about to unpack them further.

Foreground simply put is whatever is closest to the camera that is not the subject you want the focus to be on. It could be anything. Intentionally including foreground in your photo is the easiest and most effective way to create depth in your image. For added effect I like to make the foreground out of focus with a shallow depth of field. Think of the foreground as the first layer in your photograph. It’s not super important but you want it to draw the viewer into the next layer which is….

The subject. This is the middle layer of the image and what you want the whole image to be focused around. You want the viewers eye to immediately be drawn to this point. The subject needs to be tack sharp so adjust your aperture accordingly.

The last layer of the photo is just as important as your subject. It is the background. A busy background will take away attention from the subject so you want it to be as minimal as possible. There are a view ways of doing this. Frame your photo in a way that you don’t have any awkward branches or objects that seem to come out of the subjects head. This can be tricky but it will immediately bring your photography to the next level.

Another way to do this is with a shallow depth of field (my preferred method) I don’t like sharp backgrounds for portraits. I personally love having the foreground and background out of focus and make the subject pop with a tack sharp focus. It adds a polish to your photos that can often be lacking. Keep in mind that the viewers eye is drawn to the brightest part of the image. I like to eliminate bright spots in the background that can be distracting unless it adds to the artistic value of the image (in art rules are made to be broken).

There is a very easy way to find a beautiful background. First get your settings right for your portrait. When you have your settings and your ready to shoot point your camera to the ground and focus on that. Keeping that focus point on the ground lift up your camera and start looking around. The background should be out of focus since you aimed it to the ground. Look at what would make the prettiest background this way. When you found it go ahead and position your subject so that beautiful background is in your image.

Layering with depth is just one way to take your photography to the next level but it is crucial no matter what genre of photography your doing. From landscapes to portraits this technique is invaluable to every photographer!