Framing for Composition

Of the many composition techniques, framing is one of the most difficult. Used well, it’s a great way to pull a viewer into the photo. Used poorly, it adds distracting clutter.

This photo is classic framing.  The arch and rail draw you into the courtyard view.

by Hamed Saber

Framing adds to a 3 things to a photo.

Context – The viewer gets a better sense of the scene as you saw it. It shows more than just what you saw and decided to photograph. It shows the where you were. Did you photograph it through a window? Under a tree? In a crowd? A framed composition will give your viewer those details.

Depth – Few composition techniques can give a photograph a sense of being 3-D like framing. The frame gives the viewer a sense of the distance between you and the object you photographed.

Focus – If you want a viewer to look only at a small part of the photograph, framing it to block out the unnecessary will draw their eye in further. Though you could just zoom in closer to the object, framing has the benefit of context and depth.

One thing to consider is depth of field. Would your photo be better with an in or out of focus frame? When the frame is in focus you have the greatest sense of visual depth, and get the most context information. But the eye naturally will avoid the out of focus portions of a photo, making out of focus frames very effective at drawing the viewers eye into the main focus of the photo.

Framing is a difficult composition technique to use and master, but with practice can really make your photographs stand out.  A frame can be a window, arch, tree branches, or even a person.  Almost anything can be used as a ‘frame’.  Check out this example below.

by wam86

This photo of a boy looking at a polar bear using the boy’s head and arm as a ‘frame’ for the polar bear.  This effect could have been enhanced by the boy being slightly out of focus.  The polar bear is the focus, but the frame of the boy’s head and arm make the photo much more interesting than a close up of the bear would have been.