Two Shot Strategy - Symmetry
This tip was submitted by DPS reader, Todd.
Hi Darren, here’s a tip that I’d love to share with your readers.
When I’m out and about with my digital camera I’ve gotten into the habit of taking at least two shots of almost every scene that I see.
A Symmetrical shot and an Asymmetrical one (or one with the subject dead centre and one with it off centre).
I know that compositional rules like the rule of thirds say to put your main object off centre to create more interest in your shot (and I agree that it usually gets the best results) but sometimes the most stunning shot is the one when you put the main point of interest slap bang in the middle of your shot and where there’s real symmetry in the image.
As a result I’ve trained myself to always take at least two shots - one looking for to use the rule of thirds and asymmetry and the other with as much symmetry as possible.
The beauty of digital photography is that it doesn’t cost any more to take two shots than one and the results of doing so mean when I get back to my PC I have the choice of two shots of most scenes.
PS from Darren: Great tip Todd. I have another friend who tells me that she does something similar - but her two shots are always one in a horizontal framing and the other in the vertical framing.
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February 26th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Anyone else think it’s strange that a post entitled “Two Shot Strategy,” only has one picture in it?
February 26th, 2007 at 2:03 pm
I now find that for every photo I take a few different exposures, plus a bit of exposure bracketing for HDR, and the horizontal and vertical… thank goodness SD cards are getting cheaper!
February 26th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
Yeah - I was hoping to see the other shot too! Please post if up if you can :) Thanks
February 26th, 2007 at 3:01 pm
Sounds like there should be a 4 shot strategy now, 2 horizanta l: asymetrical, symetrical & 2 vertical: asymetrical, horizantal.
February 27th, 2007 at 3:33 pm
I tend to take a couple shots myself, usually flash/no flash if the lighting looks dim. but this is a good idea!
I wouldn’t take horizontal/vertical framing shots though. Just zoom out (or step back) a little and crop when you get home!
February 27th, 2007 at 4:19 pm
And a fifth shot: turn around and shoot whatever is behind you.
February 27th, 2007 at 7:51 pm
For this photograph, I think the second shot should have been taken approximately one foot in front. If I cover up the the white line at the bottom of the photo, suddenly - whoosh - the road is racing towards me, unrestrained. Western thinking often has a great fear of empty space.
March 2nd, 2007 at 11:31 am
Good idea, yes. But the picture with the blue tinted clouds is not a good idea. It’s TOO MUCH!!! Adding to a picture is fine, this is killing it.
March 3rd, 2007 at 5:15 am
At first I thought that showing the 2 images would have made sense, but this subject matter(of the country road)demanded the symmetrical approach; the other image was most likely inferior to the one posted…
March 3rd, 2007 at 5:44 am
I usually try to take at least 2 or 3 images of the same scene. I either change the angle of shooting, or camera settings,or play with DOF, or change lighting. It allows me to choose a better image later. Thanks for your advice. I will make use of it next time.
March 4th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
I agree with the comment that the blue tint in the sky is too much. Other than that - I really like this photo…the contrast with the fields is a nice touch.
March 5th, 2007 at 7:12 am
Horizonally, the land plane is almost center of the
picture. The upper dark blue of the sky helps balance
the image toward thirds. Well balanced photograph.
March 5th, 2007 at 8:05 am
The idea of taking more than one shot is the key. The hard part is what changes you want to make for each shot. When I am on a long vacation I tend to take 100 pictures a day and delete the poor ones before I get to my PC. I do not take many duplicates. When I am out for the day space is not a problem so I will work harder at taking several photos of the same scene using a different perspective or settings.
May 4th, 2007 at 8:05 pm
I think it would look great as a black and white.
May 15th, 2007 at 11:11 pm
I think that’s the beauty of photography. It’s an art. Following rules will limit your creativeness.
But of course, rules are there to guide you, and i think i speak for everyone when i say all this tips on photography really help. Thanks
October 1st, 2007 at 8:59 am
The sky isn’t tinted blue. Look at the bright white — it is white. If it had been tinted you would see a blue tint to the white as well.
I really think the intense blue is due to the film used — it’s that fake cheese film: velvia. :-)
October 1st, 2007 at 9:11 am
I’d like to say something regarding the belief that rules limit creativity. While it sounds correct intuitively, it generally is wrong.
These sorts of rules are generalities we’ve come to understand over time. There is no art without limitation, that is to say, without restraining something via a conscious choice.
Basic rules often merely create the space within which the artistic vision is worked out. They don’t necessarily inhibit freedom they provide the context for freedom.
Please, learn to work within thses rules, master the aesthetic. Then you won’t so much be breaking the rules as you will discovering the truth beneath words that form the rule.
November 29th, 2007 at 11:54 am
For those wondering about the sky, I note from the Flickr link that this was shot with a circular polarizer.