Ford's Photography Classroom Session 2- Part 2 of Cropping Photos

In my previous Ford's Photography Classroom, I talked about putting the focus of your image off center to create better photos.  This is usually a good idea, but sometimes it is better to center things. As I stated before, it is all a matter personal preference and rules are made to be broken. Let me show you some examples of images I cropped to give the subject center stage.

For this image, it about symmetry. The front leg is a little off center on the left, but for the most part, he is pretty symmetrical and the background is all the same, so the image has the most impact with him right in the center. Your eye is drawn to his eyes.

Speaking of eyes, this images really connects with the viewer because the eyes are looking straight at you. This is the original picture, the way it came out of the camera. Below you will see how I cropped it for greater impact.

I feel like there is a more intense connection with the subject here.  Symmetry and closer proximity also  give the image more impact. 

This bird takes center stage for the same reason as the previous examples. 

In this image of the same bird, I feel like the plant to the left is competing for attention.

Center weighted photos are not always about the eyes. Here the bright color of the chair draws your eye to it . The composition is more pleasing if the pop of color is in the center.

To me, it just feels better in the center. The subject  feels framed and highlighted.

Because my last session had a shirtless man in it, I figured I should use another bare chested man to prove a point. This is a bad crop. It just feels like he is jumping dangerously and it will not end well.

Here is a better crop. You know he is centered over water and will end up safely in the water.

​Below are some more images where the subjects are in the center. Maybe you can figure out why I made the choice to crop them that way.

Many of these  images have something else in common that helps to draw the eye to the subject, but you will have to wait for my next session to learn about that. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you are enjoying these sessions. I sure do love sharing what I love to do with you!