Tag Archives: photography

Lisbon Rooftops

This week continues our theme from the last — creative composition during travel photography.

Lisbon Door

Remember while traveling to use your imagination when looking for a stand-out photographic subject.  Picture in your mind how focusing on that small detail rather than, say, an entire building will look to the viewer.  And don’t be afraid of the derelict.  Even a run-down wreck can pique interest in the viewer.

Batumi, Georgia on the Black Sea

Don’t forget standard “rules” of photography, however, such as The Rule of Thirds.:

Meteora Masterpiece

Or the use of negative space to enhance a subject:

Lisbon Balcony

Then again, sometimes such rules should be disregarded:

Rome Balcony

Today’s cameras do a lot of the work that used to fall on the photographer, such as determining exposure values and controlling depth-of-field.  Some cameras even assist with composition in that they display a Rule of Thirds grid pattern for aligning subjects.  In the end, however, no amount of automation will ever replace the photographer’s role in choosing what to shoot and how to ultimately compose the subject.  If you don’t do your part, no amount of in-camera processing is going to salvage a badly-composed shot.

Today’s photo gallery (click on an image to bring up the slideshow):

Azores Windows

Santorini Façade

Alhambra Windos

Blue Door in the Azores

Cadiz Flowers

Malta Balcony

Cadiz — Just One of what turned out to be a Really Great Set of Knockers . . for the Door

Today we continue our look at composing for detail rather than for the broad overview.  The latter gives you a great postcard, but the former is very often the money shot when it comes to reminiscing on past travels and finding shots worthy of framing and hanging on the wall as art.

Santorini Splash

While color can be an important element as to what makes a great shot, it is far from the only consideration.  And sometimes adhering to traditional layout such as The Rule of Thirds is essential in bringing out the most interest through creative use of negative space.  For instance, this following shot would not have had anywhere near the visual impact had the subject been centered:

Malta Shutters

On the other hand, sometimes you’ll find that a particular subject lends itself to centering and then proportion-enhancing cropping later during post processing:

As for roof shots, as sea of red tile can be quite intriguing:

Tiled Roofs of Lisbon

This week’s Fun Photo Friday will present a half-dozen of some of my favorite examples.  Meanwhile, enjoy today’s slideshow (click on any image below):

Santorini Store

Cadiz Color

Alhambra, Spain

Lisbon Glass

Barcelona Beauty

Port Grimaud Balcony

Azores