Composition and Framing
Framing and composition are not the same. Framing is everything you decide to include or exclude from the image. Composition is how you organize these elements to guide the eye and tell a story.
⚙️ Framing vs Composition: Understanding the Difference
In short: with framing, you choose 'what to show' and remove the superfluous. With composition, you decide 'how to arrange' the selected elements to create a coherent visual relationship.
- Framing eliminates distractions and fills the frame with the subject.
- Composition establishes links between shapes, lines, colors, textures, and light.
🖼️ Effective Framing: 2 Simple Levers
To clean up your image and clarify the message, first play with your position, then with the angle of view or focal length.
Move
- Left ⇄ right to remove a distracting element.
- Higher ⇅ lower (high/low angle) to simplify the background.
- Forward ⇄ backward to adjust the subject's size in the frame.
Adjust Angle or Focal Length
- Wide shot to set the context.
- Tight shot to isolate a detail and enhance emotion.
- A slight reframing often makes all the difference.
📖 Framing Changes the Story
The same place can look lively in a wide shot and mysterious in a tight shot on a look or texture. By choosing what you let into the image, you immediately influence the perceived meaning.
- Wide shot = context, atmosphere, scene dynamics.
- Tight shot = details, expressions, abstractions, and symbols.
Wide shot: set the scene and general mood.
Tight shot: isolate a detail to enhance emotion.
#️⃣ The Rule of Thirds
Divide your image into 9 equal zones and place important elements on the lines or intersections.
🛤️ Leading Lines
Use natural lines to guide the eye to your main subject.
Rivers, paths, mountain ridges, rocky coasts, bridges
🧊 Creating Depth
Include elements at different distances: foreground, midground, background.
ForegroundMidgroundBackgroundLayer a striking foreground, a subject in the midground, and a background to create depth.
🪞 Symmetry and Reflections
Reflections in water or symmetrical compositions create powerful visual balance.
Reflections: a natural symmetry that stabilizes the composition and draws the eye.
🪟 Frame Within the Frame
Use openings, doors, windows, arches, shadows, or reflections to create a 'frame' within your image. This device focuses attention on the subject and adds depth and visual tension.
- Position yourself to align the subject with this natural frame.
- A frame can be flexible: silhouettes, light areas, repeated patterns.
- It doesn't have to be rectangular: think curves, diagonals, grids.
🧩 Watch the Edges of the Frame
We often focus on the center and forget the periphery. Before shooting, scan all four edges to spot a hand, pole, car, or cut-off element that disrupts the reading.
- Prefer a micro-move to remove the distracting element.
- Aim for the right framing when shooting, don't rely only on cropping.
🧮 Geometry and Repetition
Simple shapes powerfully structure an image. Spot rectangles, squares, circles, parallel lines, and patterns to create a visual frame that guides the eye to the subject.
- Echo between shapes (circle/glasses, rectangle/window, etc.).
- Repetitions and alignments create rhythm and coherence.
🔗 Compose: Connect the Elements
Composition begins as soon as there are at least two elements in the frame. You can bring them closer by moving or waiting for the right moment, and play with the following visual relationships:
- Contrasts of size, shapes, or textures.
- Complementary or harmonious colors.
- Parallel lines, responding curves, repeated patterns.
- Light that separates the subject from the background (light/dark).
🪜 Composing with 3 Elements (or More)
The more elements, the trickier the balance. Look for visual coherence and simplify without hesitation.
- Clear hierarchy: main subject, secondary elements, background.
- Rhythm and repetition to structure the image.
- Remove anything that doesn't add to the reading.
✅ Quick Checklist Before Shooting
- What do I want to show, and what can I remove from the frame?
- Where does the eye land first, then where does it go?
- Clean horizon, edges without distracting cut-off elements?
- Did I try a slight move up/down/left/right?
✨ In Short
First, refine your framing to clarify the intention, then compose to give meaning. Take time to observe: a few centimeters of movement can transform the image.