Composition?

This image breaks the rules. The eye is centered, and the turtle is cut off on the side of the frame. However, I rather like it. What do you think? Should it be recropped to move the eye to one of the thirds or does having it centered draw you in?

I think it is nice this way.

When you crop it there will be little blue left which I like in this picture.

Honestly, it doesn't quite cut it for me as an "artistic shot", whatever that means, but would fare great for specific applications where a message or other smaller pictures would be inserted on the left (e.g double-spread in a magazine, postcard, etc.)

Honestly, it doesn't quite cut it for me as an "artistic shot", whatever that means, but would fare great for specific applications where a message or other smaller pictures would be inserted on the left (e.g double-spread in a magazine, postcard, etc.)

I'm with mattdiver. While I don't think this composition is ideal for use with text either, but this is something people should think about more often. Remember that most magazine covers are generally verticals, and need plenty of negative space for the logo and heads, whatever the house style of the publication.

There are a few publications that sometimes run wrap around covers (Audobon) or fold-outs (NatGeo). Those can be tricky, as the image has to work both ways, as a cropped vertical (as it would appear on the magazine rack) fitting around the publications logo and also unfolded or extended. (Galen Rowell once managed to get two horizontal wrap-around covers for the same issue of Audobon - one for print subscriber edition and one for the newsstand, both shot on the same assignment.)

Most posters are also verticals, as are a lot of ad art.

Professional photojournalists that I knew back when I was a scribbler, when they were shooting for Time or Newsweek, if they knew (or even thought there was a chance) the story they were shooting would make a cover, they would always spend a lot of time and effort shooting verticals composed with negative space in all the right parts of the frame.

I think it is nice this way.

When you crop it there will be little blue left which I like in this picture.

Gentlemen,

Mattdiver brings up an excellent point. Just because the pic isn't perfect for fine art photography, it can be useful in other respects as he suggests. As far as the pic goes, it could be improved by cropping the left a little so that the illusion is the turtle is swimming into the pic, with water to swim into and the eye not centered. I politely hijacked your pic to show you what I mean.

Hope that helps. Oh, I also played with the water color a bit and enhanced the turtle a tad. I think it looks a little better.

Best,

Joe

Nice job on that Joe :

The eye was not actually centered on the original, the head is but the eye is off to the left. Cutting off half of the turtle is ok but you usually want it to fill the frame. There could be a purpose for the pic just like it is like the others said an add or double page spread or whatever. So the best thing to do is to take multiple shots for each purpose, a tighter head shot might be more pleasing but this shot is a keeper if the purpose ever arises. Funny how I keep a lot of stuff I don't really think much of and shoot the subject in many ways. I like to fantasize some art director would need it. Wait.. I never really meet any art directors

Wow. I was just wondering how to make it presentable enough to put it on my web page, and eveyone else is talking about what sort of magazine cover it would make!