Image Composition- Is it working?

[jlward]

Hey folks,

I get dinged on image composition every time I post a painting. So, I'm trying to figure it out. As I understand image it, image composition is closely tied with how a picture reads at it's most basic level-- how the viewers eye is directed through the painting to the focal point.

So, in an effort to consciously direct the viewers eye I have concentrated on big blocky shapes. Here's my composition thumbnail (it's of a guy standing on a mountain top holding a spear with a flag tied to the end):

http://jlward.typepad.com/CA-Org/comp.jpg

I think that the viewers eye will follow a path like this:

http://jlward.typepad.com/CA-Org/comp-flow2.jpg

The focal point is going to be where the face is... that is where I will concentrate the most detail, but at the same time I'm wondering if the flag trailing off is leading the viewers eye out of the picture and away from the focal point. I will be placing more detail along the redline until I get to the flag which will be noticably less detailed. Is that lack of detail enough to hold the viewers eye at the focal point (the face)?

Thanks for the help.

John

[Phuzion]

You have the basics of composition down. But aside from how it reads at it's most basic level (very correct), also go into more detail and encompass how the shapes relate: Big to little, light to dark etc.
right now my eye actually starts somewhere near the hand, and moves down, opposite of what you have. Your eye will probably be drawn to the point of highest contrast, and move around from there. A few good, easy points to keep in mind are these:

-Rule of 3rds (divide the "canvas" into 3rds, never in half)

-Small, Medium, and Large (When you divide it into 3rds, vary the sizes, don't make it perfect 3rds: Large, Small, Medium; Medium, Large, Small etc.)

-Don't have any shapes leading directly into a corner, unless done for specific reasons (That spear is too close to the corner of the page and leads your eye right out of the composition, which is generally a no-no)

-Put the highest contrast where you want the focal point to be (This can be contrast in value, color, detail, size etc.)

-Group your values (Break it up into foreground, middleground, and background, and group your value accordingly: Darks=foreground, Midrange=middlegroun, Light=Background; or any other way you wish to group them.

Yeah, those are some basics. So just have fun with it. Push it, make it obvious, then kick it back and make it subtle, and just play. You'll get it. Hope this helps.

-Daniel

[Big-Dave]

You've got the leading the eye bit working, but there's one problem with it. It leads the viewers eye right out the picture. Try and have something that brings it back in so that people will continue to look at the painting. Other than that, I think phuzion covers most of the basics.

Also, if you want to study composition, try lookng into books on design. When looking for information in composition in fine art instruction books, I've struggled to find things, since most of tehm seem to cover the artistic aspect more than teh technical aspect, and expect you to work out composition for yourself. Design books, on the other hand, see it as a key issue, since it's what will sell a product. As a result, they tend to have more information on it (this is from personal experience though, so I could be wrong)

[jlward]

Thanks for the replies. You guys are really helping me understand the do's and don'ts. I wanted to try something a little more complex. This might be wrong, and I'm not sure about the branches which are pointing out of picture. For what it's worth those would become more and more obscured by darkness if this were to be carried out into a painting.

http://jlward.typepad.com/CA-Org/comp3.JPG

I've tried to indicate lightsources in this one to emphasize the focal point which is the two characters (one on each side of the tree-- each holding a lightsource of some type).

Below, I've boxed in the area I want to be the focal point (mostly because of it being the only portion of the picture to receive direct lighting). I've dropped in a line for a mountainscape and blocked in an area (in blue) to show the ambient light source created by a setting sun (which will not be pictured).

http://jlward.typepad.com/CA-Org/comp3a.jpg

So, what do you think?

[geezer87]

i think the composition is okay, but i would also consider doing some thinking about what goes into the picture plane as well because that has a great affect on composition.

consider a portrait for example. in a typical portrait that shows just a face and some shoulders the artist has deliberatly decided to avoid giving you any info about where the person is sitting and has focused completely on the subject, making it the obvious focal point. however, consider if the the artist had decided to zoom out a bit more and show some of the surroundings ... what the person is sitting on, what kind of room they are in, etc. now the focal point has changed to be a little more about how the subject is interacting with the room. the room and objects in it become part of the composition. these kinds of decisions are just as important as angles, thirds, etc, when making a composition.

i know this isn't as technical of advise as phuzion gave you, but in my opinion you usually want to work the basic aesthetic of a composition first based on subject matter, then once you are getting close you can go back and check your rules and make sure you don't have any big no-no's going on.

in your last example i would say that the black is much too strong and the image as a whole just looks like a big diagonal stripe that i brush right over and out of the picture plane again.

why is the tree and the ground so dark? are they meant to be out in the open or in a forest? with the tree being so large and overbearing it feels almost claustrophobic ... is that on purpose? the tree seems more focal than the characters to me.

anyways ... those are just some thoughts that run through my mind. keep at it, composition is one of the most elusive skills for an artist to develop.

[jlward]

i think the composition is okay, but i would also consider doing some thinking about what goes into the picture plane as well because that has a great affect on composition...

...in your last example i would say that the black is much too strong and the image as a whole just looks like a big diagonal stripe that i brush right over and out of the picture plane again.

why is the tree and the ground so dark? are they meant to be out in the open or in a forest? with the tree being so large and overbearing it feels almost claustrophobic ... is that on purpose? the tree seems more focal than the characters to me.

anyways ... those are just some thoughts that run through my mind. keep at it, composition is one of the most elusive skills for an artist to develop.

The colors used in the sketch aren't really meant to convey the actual colors for the painting. I was just trying to show the light/dark areas in the painting.

The tree is something I'm not sure about. I wanted to divide the two characters as they represent the hero/villain type thing, but it's the very fact that they are divided that I think is screwing up the composition. Like you said, it seems that the tree is the actual focal point and not the characters themselves. That's also partly why I had the characters crouching so closely to the tree (which probably leads to the claustrophobia you mentioned). I felt that by keeping them close to the tree they would be more closely tied to the focal point (which seems to be the tree).

I was trying to keep the picture plane simple and uncluttered because I think the more complicated I get the more chance I have of screwing things up. So, as I improve I'd like to add additional elements to make things more interesting.

Thanks again.

[jlward]

Okay, this is a more refined approach to my first attempt at composition. I'm laying in some colors and tried to address the issue about leading the viewers eye out of the picture by having the cape blowing up so that it points back towards the center and having the pole no longer be right at the edge of the picture.

Let me know if this is working.

http://jlward.typepad.com/CA-Org/comp4.JPG

[Ive]

I think that the last composition is very succesfull. While i was watching this pic, my eye was focused right on the character, and i belive that's the initial point, right? :rendered: Good background is responsible for that methinks...

[jlward]

Okay, I'm taking the first composition and building on it, trying to make it more complicated and visually interesting. As I was doing this I realized that the big thing about image composition is prioritizing the information-- making sure that you emphasize the focal area. In the composition below, I've tried to do that with detail and the size of the character in reference to the background.

I'm pretty sure that the image is working compositionally (there might be some errors, but it's not like the big ones I used to get), but I would like to ask if I'm right about the prioritizing stuff.

http://jlward.typepad.com/CA-Org/comp5.jpg