We all have them. Photos with telephone phones sprouting out of Aunt Mildred’s head, or a misplaced spray of water from a fountain that makes Grandpa Tom look like he’s… well, you know.

This month, I want to discuss an aspect of composition pertaining to backgrounds in your images.

As you grow and learn about this wonderful hobby called photography, you are not only learning the technical side of your cameras, but you are training your “inner eye” to be more aware of your surroundings. The key to good photography is not just about proper lighting and the rule of thirds. It’s also having a sense of everything around your subject and how it will be perceived in your finished image.

And although your subject may not have ill-placed tree limbs behind them, a cluttered background can be just as hazardous.  Look at this photo of my son, taken by my husband:

Taken with Nikon D70 at f/4.2, 1/60 sec., ISO 200

Cute as he may be (and yes, I know I’m biased… ) and while the story is being told, the image lacks effectiveness and doesn’t convey his concentration, nor his obsession with art.  Notice how this all changes as he zooms in on his subject, eliminating the distracting furniture behind him:

Taken with Nikon D70 at f/4.5, 1/40 sec., ISO 200

Sometimes, it’s just a matter of waiting for your subject to be engrossed in his craft.  And at times, when you can’t or don’t want to zoom in, you will have to change your position until your subject is in front of a neutral backdrop.

However, it is sometimes not feasible to move your position or your subject. For example, when you are photographing a performance, or in a small location where there is no neutral background. In that case, you can set your camera to the widest aperture to create a very shallow depth of field. This will blur the background, as discussed in our Winter 2009/10 issue (see my January 2010 tutorial on Depth of Field here).

So, are you ready to try out what we’ve learned?

March 2011 photography assignment:

Using the March tutorial as a guide, become aware of your backgrounds. Explore your surroundings and potential distractions in your images.  This month, you will submit TWO photos – one with a distraction behind your subject and a second one, with the SAME subject, but with the distraction removed.  You can use any of the techniques discussed above (zoom in, move your position, or use a short depth of field).   As always, if you have any questions, please leave me a comment on this post, or email me at sue {AT} canadianscrapbooker {DOT} ca.

Deadline: 11:59 pm EST, March 31st, 2011

And now for the fun part – the prize!!  This month’s randomly drawn winner will receive this yummy Sassafras prize pack:

March 2011 Prize Pack by Sassafras

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING:

1) Because the whole purpose of the tutorial is to get you to experiment with your camera, submitted photos must have been taken between March 13th and March 31st, 2011, inclusive. Photos that do not meet this criteria may be shared on the blog but will not be eligible for our contest.

2) Please send original-sized files – I will size them for our blog.

3) And PLEASE don’t forget to include your camera settings, including camera used, f/stop, aperture and ISO settings for your image in the Comments section of the submisson form! Submissions that do not include this info may not be posted on the blog or included in the prize drawing.

Please submit your photo, using only our submission form (no emails, please!), for a chance to be entered into our draw to win an awesome prize. A randomly chosen entry will be drawn after the deadline. Please note – submissions that are not relative to the tutorial and/or do not abide by these rules will not be posted on the blog, or entered into the draw. Please click HERE to review the rules regarding this draw BEFORE submitting.

Happy Clicking!