Creating a powerful image

Photography
 Aims & Objectives
By the end of this session
you will be able to:
Identify what creates a
powerful image
Create a balanced image
using the rule of thirds
Describe the 5 elements of
Mise en Scene

Steve McCurry 1984

What makes an image
powerful?
Inspiration...
https://youtu.be/jNApH8nGj1U
 Story? Meaning?

What makes Composition? Lighting?

the images
powerful? Colour? Emotion?

Mood?
What do these images have in common?
 • Which images had the
most impact?
• Re view the images and
select 3 to screenshot
and save
• Let's analyse...
• https://youtu.be/jNApH8nGj
1U

Impact
 1. Content, What do you see?
2. What type of feeling/ mood does
it evoke? How and why?
3. Is it sombre/ comedy/ ironic, etc?
Analayse 4. What do you think the message or
story is? Explain why?
5. How does the composition effect
the overall impact?
Inspire
 • Ansel Easton Adams (1902 – 1984)
Landscape • CLASSIC B&W
photography?
Landscape photography?
Trey Ratcliffe (born 1971)
SURREAL HDR
 Erin Babnik (born 1979)
Landscape photography
SIMPLISTIC & DREAMY
 Practitioners common themes

• Developed their own style

• Superb balance and composition
• Use leading lines
• Rule of thirds

How can we make our own images stand out?

Leading lines

• Lines and patterns make the experience of a photograph much greater.

Through lines and patterns, take the viewers eyes through the image,
starting from one place and ending in another. Guiding the viewer through
the image is part of the story you tell and helps accentuate the subject you
wish to highlight.
Rule of thirds

• Imagine your picture area divided into thirds both horizontally and
vertically. The intersections of these imaginary lines suggest four options
for placing the center of interest for good composition. The lines can also
be used to create movement by placing items or people facing inwards or
outwards of the frame
A closer look – task 1

In pairs, examine the images in front of you, select an image each:

1. Highlight areas of the image that you feel stand out or your eye is
drawn to.
2. Highlight any leading lines.

Use your pens to circle the interesting points your eyes are most drawn
to and draw the along the leading lines
Always consider social distancing during groupwork
A closer look – task 2

Individually follow the instructions for folding your image in

thirds

What can we identify?

Analyse
• Do the images illustrate the rule of thirds?
• Can we see any leading lines?
Rule of thirds
• https://youtu.be/A7wnhDKyB
uM
• Positioning items and people
• Stills & motion pictures
Rule of thirds in
portraiture
Eyeline v movement
Let's give it a go
• Work in pairs
• Take a photo of your peers using your mobile phones using the rule of
thirds to balance the image (some have grids)
• EYELINE ON TOP THIRD
Lead room, create space and movement
 Definition:
• French term meaning what is
put into a scene or frame
• What do you think makes up
the mise-en-scene?
Introduction
to Mise-en- • mise-en-scène refers to
everything that appears
scène before the camera and its
arrangement—composition,
sets, props, actors, costumes,
and lighting.
• Bordwell, David; Thompson, Kristin (2003). Film
Art: An Introduction, 7th ed. New York:
McGraw–Hill.
5 elements of Mise-en-scène
• Settings & Props
• Costume, Hair & Make Up
• Facial Expressions & Body Language
• Lighting & Colour
• Positioning of characters/objects within the frame
Settings and props

What settings and props

you would find in:
1. A Science Fiction Film
2. A Western Film
3. A Horror Film
4. An Action Film
Costume, Hair
& Make Up
What can you establish from this
movie still?
Costume, Hair & Make Up
• Costume, hair and cosmetics act as
an instant indicator to us of a
character’s personality, status and job
• It tells us immediately whether the
film is set in the present and what
society/or culture it
will centre around
• Certain costumes can signify certain
individuals (Superman's cloak)
Facial Expressions & Body Language
• Facial Expressions provide a clear indicator of how someone is feeling
• If someone is smiling broadly, we assume they are happy, but we may
get a different feeling if this is accompanied by scary music
• Body Language may also indicate how a character feels towards
another character or may reflect the state of their relationship

TASK: What meanings/emotions do the following images convey:

Positioning of Characters & Objects within a
frame
• Positioning within a frame can draw our attention to an important
character/object
• A film-maker can use positioning to indicate relationships between
people

TASK: What does the positioning in the following image reveal about
the characters/film.
 Lighting & Colour
• Lighting and colour can be used
to achieve a variety of effects:
• •To highlight important
characters or objects within the
frame
• •To make characters look
mysterious by shading sections of
the face & body
• •To reflect a character’s mental
state/hidden emotions (i.e.
bright = happy, dark = disturbed,
strobe effect = confused
Tasks

Task One
• Re watch clips from a favourite movie and identify the 5 elements of mise-
en-scene.
• Write a blog page titled Mise-en-scène with images (screenshots or stills
from the movie) to illustrate your research, highlighting the 5 elements and
their effectiveness.
• Submit a link to your page via Teams assignments - Mise-en-scène

Task Two
• Take a photo (using either your smart phone or a camera) of an outside
scene/landscape using the rule of thirds, bring the photo with you to
class next Friday (Sept 18th)