How to analyse a photograph to improve my composition

By collecting, I mean storing links which I then display on my PC like a contact sheet. I'm not reproducing or displaying other photographers work.

Hi. How familiar are you with concepts such as the Rule Thirds (for what it's worth), leading lines, positive & negative space, symmetrical and asymmetrical balance, etc etc.? If the answer is 'not a lot', then you need to gain an understanding of these. I have found the guidance on this site together with photoinf.com invaluable.

As for me, I look at three things. 1 - is it technically sound (colour, grain, verticals being vertical, appropriate lighting etc.). 2 - how does the composition stack up (does the eye make sense of the scene or does it wander wound aimlessly, weight, lines, position of subject in frame etc). 3 - how does it feel on an emotional level (does it tell a story, how do we engage with the people, landscape etc.).
Hope this helps!

What I do when I look at photographs (and I do somewhat like you do, except I do have a book with photos from magazines and other things that I keep for ideas and inspiration). But , when I look at photographs I like, I always try to write down what draws me to the picture, what I liked, what I would change, like Simon, I try to see if there is a theme or story. I usually keep these with the picture so I can reference.
It seems tedious at first, but once you get into the habit, it becomes second nature.

I'ld suggest you first get in the habit of feeling what you're seeing rather than trying to create pictures that are in your head and looking around for reality to piece it together for you.

Look around you, note what you feel and whether it makes you want to place it in a frame and trip the shutter. Note if framing it changes the feeling and move in all 3D directions to get back or enhance that feeling. You can't fake feeling and emotion. Your feelings will be unique to you and you alone so it will be impossible for you to copy what others have already done.

The results must please you because you're the one that's going to be looking at these images for years on end when others either hate, like or have no opinion about them. Do you want to live with the results of what they say you should do rather than what you feel? I'm sure you know the answer to that.

You can learn the rules of composition as Simon indicates, just don't use it as a crutch as a way to make you feel something about what you're looking at that wasn't there to begin with.

Composition must be felt. Study those images that make you feel and pick them apart according to the placement of the light and dark that make up each element. I'm sure something will sink in.

When you get to that moment where you're saying to yourself..."That looks neat, but stupid (different) compared to what others have done"...you're there.

Laurence,

Regarding your own photos first, it's not a cure all, but try to crop them in different ways to see if you can create a stronger image. Then the next time you use your camera, you can apply the same creative and selective cropping principles at capture time.

When shooting: Is it clear what your subject is? Is the subject presented well, I.e. in a way that communicates your feeling toward it? Are there distracting elements in the frame, particularly along the edges? Would placement of the subject somewhere else in the frame or in a different light improve the photo. How much non-subject space is in the photo and is it being used effectively?

Regarding the photos of other, ask yourself whether the photo could have been taken in another way - different crop, different lens, different viewpoint, different lighting. Did the photographer succeed in making a strong image, or could it be improved or at least clarified?

There are lots of resources on composition, but most of them are horrible. Do your own analysis and come up with some fresh ideas. Avoid any resource that focuses on the so called rule of thirds. It's not a rule and it's not very effective unless you want to look as though it's the only thing that you understand about composition.

You might try "reverse engineering" photos that you like.
When I was teaching photography the students found this quite valuable.

The idea is to envision the entire space where the photo was taken, and the conditions that existed at the time.
This will tune your thought processes to seeing, rather than looking, when confronted by a scene.

Any photo is just an "executive summary" of an environment.
It tries to capture in one image some portion of the real world around us.

- Leigh

Hi Laurence:
The other day I was reading a post on compostion on a very good website call Cambridge in Colour. You might find it, and it's references, interesting.
http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/forums/thread16223.htm
The so called 'rule of thirds' seems to get a lot of bad press, including here, but I think it's not a bad place to start from. It's too bad the word 'rule' is often used but the fact of the matter is we often don't like to see the focal point plonked vertically and horizontally in the middle of the frame (or right at the edge) so +/- 1/3 in and +/- 1/3 up or down seems to me to be a reasonable start. You can break the 'rules' later and make your own.
Adreas Feininger, who was with 'Life' magazine many years ago wrote possibly the best book which I have ever read on composition.
Good luck, Dave D

Dave,
What was the title of that book, if I may ask.
Thanks,
William

What was the title of that book, if I may ask.

Principles of Composition in Photography.

Amazing what Google can find.

- Leigh