Masterclass

With so many new members of this forum, some of whom are relatively new to photography, I thought it timely to offer a masterclass in composition.

This week's topic is "Cropping".

The purpose of cropping is to isolate the significant part of the image from its unimportant and distracting surroundings, thereby highlighting what the photographer feels to be the essence of the image.

Before going further, I shall illustrate the benefits of cropping with a picture. Josh, newly joined from Wales, has a charming picture in the competition that has just finished. I hope he won't mind me using it as an example. It's perfectly OK as it is, but a judicious crop changes the whole effect, as I am sure you will agree when you see it.

Here is the original:




Now, here is the suggested crop. You may need to scroll down a bit to see it.




























I think that's enough for today. There's been quite a lot to take in. Next week's topic will be "Choosing the right crop". I shall ask distinguished party-giver, Max Mosley, to give us his views.

G

And here i was, thinking: What an excellent idea of George. I guess you have to be at least British to get the humorous under tone in it.

Martin it helps if you know who Max Mosley is and what he has been up to lately.
An excellent posting George - gave me a much needed laugh on a Monday morning!