Page 127 - Convergent Journalism an Introduction Writing and Producing Across Media

Composing Images for the Screen, Television, and Computer

camera automatically closes the lens aperture and sets its own black
balance.

Composing Images for the Screen, Television,
and Computer

You want the images you capture to be as pleasing as possible. For
news photography, they should also look natural. You want viewers to
feel as though they were at the scene. At the same time, you want to
show them something they wouldn’t have noticed if they were there.
Photographic composition follows the same rules established for
paintings and drawings. Every frame of video should be able to stand on
its own as far as composition is concerned. Shoot from the perspective
that you should be able to hang every image on the wall or even make
a postcard from your frames.

Framing and Composing
You should usually avoid placing the subject in the center of the frame. 117
People read left to right, so their eyes are conditioned to naturally go
to a point about two-thirds up the page. The same conditioning works
when you are looking at a video screen. The rule of thirds is one of the
most useful tools of composition. If you divide the television screen into
three equal parts both horizontally and vertically, your main subject
should appear on those lines and at the intersections of those lines.
Think of it as a tic-tac-toe grid on the screen. Place the skyline or
horizon on either the top or bottom line of the upper third. That will
give you either more sky or less sky depending on your subject. Place
people on the left or right third line with the balance of space providing
looking room. Avoid having your subject looking at the edge of the
screen or about to exit the frame.
A dominant foreground with related background and its opposite of
a dominant background with related foreground are both good compo-
sition techniques. Some good examples include a low-angle shot of a
football on the ground as the game is played in the field behind, or the
weathered hands of an artist molding a spinning mound of clay while
he sits in the background, looking at his work.
Certain subjects and locations call for certain composition. A long,
straight railroad track can lead you to your subject. Rows of stacked
wood can draw your eyes to the end where a man is hard at work sawing.