Tom Shue

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Good Composition – Cropping People Like The Pros Do It

Posted by Richard Harrington on May 1, 2013
Posted in: Screencast, Technique & Tutorials, Tips. Tagged: , , , , . 1 comment

Guest Post by Tom Shue - Follow Tom on Twitter.

Cropping People

Composition is the act of framing the subject with respect to the the relationship of foreground and background elements. Basically it’s how you express a vision and how you want your story told through a photograph. Composition has many elements and each one can have a huge impact on it, let me name a few:

  • Rule of thirds
  • Leading lines
  • S-curves
  • Point of view
  • Orientation (portrait or landscape)
  • Depth Of Field
  • Symmetry
  • Texture
  • Cropping (the element we will discuss today)

Composition and Cropping are huge topics, so I am just going to try to give you some tips that I use when “Cropping People.”

Cropping people and cropping landscape images are a bit different. With landscape images you usually just crop until you have eliminated the distracting elements (while making sure the horizon line is level). With people, you do the same with respect to removing distracting elements but you must ensure the subject is the primary focus of the frame.

There are some things that you might have heard like “I have to shoot loose to leave space to fit an 8″ x 10″ frame” or “Cropping in post is for farmers”. Don’t get caught up in the words, just remember to think before you shoot. Try to remove distracting elements in the viewfinder and frame the subject based on the intended final use of the image.

You are going to have several opportunities to crop your image.

  • Cropping in camera. Try to place the subject in the frame in such a way they are the main focus of the image.
  • Cropping in post. You’ll get a chance to crop your image is in post (Lightroom or Photoshop). With today’s massive file sizes, and the fact that often, images are being used for the web, you can freely crop in post with little worry of exhausting resolution.
  • Cropping when framing. The last chance you might crop is when you frame an image. Yes, I am one of those who still mounts prints and often time use the matte board as a cropping point to help solidify composition. Just remember whenever you crop, that you are doing so with the direct intention to strengthen the composition of the final image, or just don’t do it.

When making images of people, you may find yourself cropping a full length, a three-quarter, a bust or a headshot image. Each one of those crops will have some rules that you might want to consider.

  • Full length: In a full length, you must always have the hands and the feet in the frame (always).
  • Three-quarter: In a three-quarter shot, do not crop too close to a joint and never at an ankle or a knee.
  • Bust: Make sure that if you decide to remove the hands do not do it at the wrist. Consider cropping above the elbow so the subject does not look like they have an amputation.
  • Head shot: It’s always best to try to fill the frame with a headshot. Try to put one the eyes (the one closest to the camera) on one of the points of interest, usually in the upper third of the frame. Also in a head shot don’t worry about cropping off the top of the head, this is normal. Just keep an eye on the top third of the frame and it will work.

These cropping rules are the ones that I use. Please try them and see if they help you make better images. Thanks for taking time to visit today.

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Assisting At A Calendar Shoot – A Fast Car An Empty Race Track – An Incredible Camera

Posted by scottbourne on July 18, 2012
Posted in: Technique & Tutorials. Tagged: , , , , , , .

Post and Photos By Thomas Shue of Lilsamedia Follow Thomas on Twitter

This week I got one of those chances that dont come around very often in a lifetime. I got to play with my favorite toys (camera gear) and use them to help make pictures of an incredible car, Scott Bourne’s 2012 Jaguar XKR convertible. This is only part of the story, thanks to Scott, I got a chance to do it at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. You are probably thinking a lot of people have been at that track and you are right, however on this day I was one of two people that had full unrestricted access to the entire track. It was ours. And not just the road courses or drag strip that are often open to amateur racers. I am not talking about walking around in the stands. I am talking about driving on the Super Oval. Only a handful of people get to do that. And while my Ford Focus was no match for Scott’s Jag it was fun.

Scott called me last week to ask if I wanted to be a part of a photo shoot at the speedway. The deal was I had to be there art 6am sharp, ready to work. I live almost an hour away so this is kind of a big deal, but when Scott asked me, I didn’t hesitate. I was there early, the sky was incredible, it had rained for the previous three days and we almost had to cancel, but on this day, it was perfect. The track was dripping in excitement, in my head I could see all of the places that are jammed packed with world famous people on race day. The driver’s paddock, pit row, the infield, the world famous turn 4, last but not least the place that all the magic happens, the finish line, best of all, I was there. Right there.

There is so much to this story, I could write pages and pages of how special this place is, but I am already at word 216 of a 100 words I was given to talk about this shoot. Sorry Scott, I am going to run a little long on this one.

There I was at an incredible place, with an incredible car, (you should hear it when it down shifts) and some incredible gear. Lets not forget and the day was perfect for photography, I know I already said that, but it really was a perfect day.

We started off doing some static shots with as the sun was peaking in and out of the clouds. I assisted Scott as we made pictures at the finish line, pit row, the drivers paddock and turn four. The environment was a bit overwhelming. It was hard to stay focused since this place draws you in to the spectacle of it all. This was my first time at a super speedway. I cant imagine the excitement on race day, because I was already on overload and the best was yet to come.

Now it came time for Scott to suit up and put this beautiful car through it’s paces. I knew the XKR is fast but I had no idea it had that kind of power. I was mainly there to assist Scott for what ever heed needed during the shoot. I stood there wanting to throw rocks at my 5D MKIII as I saw Scott using his new 1DX. I dont know if it was hearing that sweet shutter rip off a 12 frame bracket in less than a second, or the incredible lines that new camera body. Heck I think it was both. It wasn’t until he handed the 1DX to me, that I knew it was really show time. I started off with a few simple shots of Scott suiting up, then we headed off to the track where Scott got to go fast and I got to shoot his fast camera.

The first lap was very hard for me to track the car when he hit the finish line. By laps two and three I think I was nailing the shots. I am a portrait and lighting guy, the fastest thing I shoot is sitting still. It is a testament of the 1DX that a person with very little experience can pick it up and make some keepers. I did run into a problem however, I tried to get cute with a camera I have never used. I tried to do some panning shots, I choose 1/30th of a second as a shutter speed and pan a car that is moving at over 150 mph only a short distance away. I see those shots as a failure because I missed two passes worth of keepers. However I learned from it. This is a lesson for all of us; make mistakes and learn from them. If everything in life was perfect and you never make any mistakes you are not learning, you are not pushing yourself hard enough. I took a shot and I blew it, I did make one panning keeper, but remember I was trying something completely new with no past experience, on a camera I have never used before. One last thing – I only attempted the panning images after I had already got the shots during the first two laps.

I haven’t seen any of the final images I took with the 1DX. I briefly spoke to Scott about them and learned I blew the panning shots however, I did make some BTS shots with my camera and I hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I did making them. I want to thank Scott for an incredible day, a day that I won’t forget any time soon.

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