Objects in Different Positions in the Frame

Composing an image should be a thoughtful process.
In order to understand the different areas of the frame and where to position your subject, this exercise is designed so that you choose a single subject and must show it in different positions while carefully thinking if the photographs works, why id does or doesn't and which appeals most.

f/5.0-1/400-100-135mm (Centred)

f/5.0-1/400-100-135mm (Lower Left)

f/5.0-1/400-100-135mm (Lower Right)

f/5.0-1/400-100-135mm (Upper Left)

f/5.0-1/400-100-135mm (Upper Right)

Reposition the Sun-dial within the frame in the above photos I feel tends to work better for the Upper Left and Upper Right. With in inclusion of the white flowers and contrasting greens faded in the background these two appeal to me more. The Lower Left and Right photos, I feel have lost to much detail of the sun-dial and the photos have become unbalanced in such a way that they do not look good.
The Centred photo lacks composition and appeal.

Focal Length with Different View Points

This exercise is to demonstrate the affects of changing the focal length on specific subject.

f/22-1/100-3200-250mm

Using a zoom lens at 250mm focal length the image shows the women resting by the base of tree, both the tree and women fill the frame.

f/22-1/30-1000-17mm

Changing focal length to 17mm and composing the image so that the women is positioned the same in each frame, meant I had to move closer to the subject. the resulting image shows a much wider view of the subject and the surrounding and bring the entire scene in to the frame.

Positioning the Horizon

Manipulating the position of the horizon was the aim of this exercise.

f/14-1/60-400-40mm

Position of the Horizon towards the top, shows good detail in the mud flaps, the sun setting in the background adds to the composition of the photograph.

f/14-1/60-320-40mm

Horizon position slightly lower than above, the detail is lost in the bottom of the photo now which has perhaps lost some of the contrast across the image.

f/14-1/60-320-40mm

Horizon now mid way, the photo appears bland, the actual position of the horizon and detail within the photo do not blend well together.

f/14-1/60-200-40mm

The sky is more prominent in the photo above, the detail of the mud flaps, and curves draw your attention to the front of the photo where sun and clouds offer another attractive point of view.

f/14-1/60-125-40mm

With the horizon positioned along the bottom of the frame, the focus of the photo now becomes vast expanse of sky. The sun setting in the bottom left helps draw your attention away from the nothingness.

f/14-1/80-125-40mm

The horizon is now just below the bottom of the photo, small details are slightly visible.

A combination of low and high horizon lines work well here.
Looking through the photos I feel that there's a relationship between the horizon line and details within the frame that help with composition and determining if the horizon affects the photograph and how it looks.
I note that as rule of thumb horizons tend not to be positioned centrally, however there are always exceptions to this rule ... depending on the subject, detail and meaning.

Focal Length

For this exercise I had to choose a single scene where I could effectively take a single wide angle shot and from here, zoom in to others areas close by changing the focal length and looking for shots within the original shot taken.

f/9.0-1/100-100-19mm

I choose a local spot overseeing Portsmouth.

f/9.0-1/320-200-163mm

Zoomed in area to the left, I noticed some Black birds resting. Photo taken with Langstone Harbour in the distance.

f/9.0-1/320-640-250mm

Typical terraced houses focused in the background, while a family enjoy the good weather nearby.

f/9.0-1/320-500-250mm

Same photo as above, however this time I decided to focus in on the father, teaching his son how to fly a kite.

f/9.0-1/400-200-250mm

A very foggy evening, of a view looking down into Western Portsmouth.

f/9.0-1/400-125-250mm

A misty view of the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth. I took several photos of this, and ending up choosing this image as it captures a bird souring in sky above.

f/9.0-1/250-800-179mm

A lonely bench!

Balance

The object of this exercise is to take some of my existing photographs and look at how they are balanced.
whether this is by, subject, other objects, colour etc
Next to each photo you will a small chart showing my interpolation of the 'balance' in each photo.

f/5.0-0.5-100-30mm

Balance was straight forward here, with the statue dead centre and the two church towers either side.

f/5.6-1/60-1600-79mm

Although I like the composition of this photo, the balance as I see it is slightly off centred, however this doesn't affect the image and makes it more appealing.

f/5.6-1/60-800-55mm

 Although the most dominate feature of this image is the sign post, I feel the background and washed colours help balance this photo out.

f/8-1/400-500-250mm

A good balance of deep colours and subjects help balance this photo.

f/5.6-1/1600-400-250mm

Here each Dama Gazelle almost mirror each other as they playfully head butt each other! 

I like this image as it portrays a typical romantic link between each animal, although slightly cheesy!

f/8-1/100-320-200mm

The balance here is difficult to determine, as the lion statue is so dominate within the frame. Although at first glance it would appear off balance, I feel the nature of the background bring the image together, the subtle details of the windows, the house and vines all aid at balancing out the photo.

Cropping

Here I have to take some of my existing photographs and crop them in a way to produce a slightly different view or take on the photo, whether it will be enhanced or perhaps throw in there a different meaning.

F/5.6-1/100-100-250mm

CROP!

Here I have decided to zoom closer in on the yacht to make it more prominent within the photograph, while slightly off setting if from centre to give a more appealing composition.

f/2.4-1/80-400-50mm

CROP!

My aim here was to bring focused attention to the eyes and face of the model.

F/5.6-1/250-200-250mm

CROP!

I wanted Bring the black and yellow stripe of the Gold Crest to full attention, by zooming in and maknig the bird fill more of the frame.

f/5.6-1/200-100-250mm

CROP!

The idea here was not to focus on any particular feature but to change the shape and overall layout of the image while keeping the blue tit as the main focus.

Fitting the Frame to the Subject

Following my recent upset, of losing all my photographs I wanted to get a move on so for this exercise I decided to op for using my car as the single object. A little dirty due to all the travelling I do with my job but it helps portray a more realistic view and down to earth view of a car/object and not something you'll see on a garage forecourt being sold!

f/9.0-1/160-100-40mm
Standard View of Subject

f/9.0-1/160-100-17mm
Fitting the Frame

f/9.0-1/125-100-17mm
Alternative View

f/9.0-1/80-200-40mm
Close up view of section of car showing details of badge.
The colours here split the photo nicely in two where the silver badge helps draw the eye in.

f/18.0-1/40-125-17mm
Another close up view of the main badge of the car. I decided to centralise the image on this occasion which I feel has given a more striking image as the bonnet of the car stretches away in the distance.

f/18.0-1/30-100-17mm
Another different angled view to help exaggerate the sweeping curves of the car.