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5 Factors That Allow For More Interesting Photos
If you’ve ever spent much time in Miami, you’ll know that there’s an area called Wynwood. It’s a former industrial part of the city that had become neglected. But some years ago investors who were connected to the art scene decided to cover all the buildings with world-class murals.
They commissioned the best street artists from around the world to make the district look beautiful, intriguing, and unique. And it worked to bring commerce to the area and it put Miami on the map as an artistic hub.
This photo was made during Art Basel, a highly acclaimed annual international art festival that happens in Miami every December.
People often like this photo. But to tell you the truth, I don’t really get it. What is amazing in this particular photo is the mural itself. The people walking by demonstrate how grand the mural is.
But a few weeks ago I blogged about the photography factors of light, space, and time. This photo has little capability of any of these factors. So in this blog post, I’ll explain how the more variation you have of light, space, and time, and choice of composition and content, the more options you have to make an interesting photo.
Variation of Light
Nobody will argue that light is critical for photography. But not everybody will tell you that light variation will allow you to have a more interesting photo. Take the above image as an example. There’s the lighting inside the home, and there’s also the light coming in from outside.
At the angle that I’m positioned, I was able to meter my camera to balance for the light inside, the light outside, or anything in the middle.
I opted to meter for the side of the baby’s face that was in the sunlight. This allowed the other side of her body to go a bit darker. And it emphasized the sunlight falling on her arm.
Alternatively, had I metered for the left side of the baby to be the key (what I meter off of), then the her right side would have been lighter than I wanted it to be, and I may have lost all detail…
