A lost of people know about the rule of thirds, the s-curve as well as other elements of photographic composition. Let's have a look at something that is a little more advanced in the world of image composition that was discovered by a 12th century Italian mathematician called Fibonacci.Introducing The Golden SectionThe Golden Section is simply a compositional rule that dictates that a well composed image can be achieved by dividing the frame by 1.6 several times.By doing this, you get a pattern like this:Image courtesy of Nam Nam The Geek ExplanationFibonacci is most famous for developing a series of number sequence which adds the previous two numbers:0,1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55...When you divide successive numbers, you come up with 1.6 which is a key in mathematics to proportions (hence its relationship to photography). When you apply the Fibinacci sequence to a rectangle you get a tiling with squares whose sides are successive Fibonacci numbers in length. Each square is roughly 1.6 times as big as the last. Like this:How to Use the Golden SectionImages speak louder than words, so have a look at this image and the one below it to see an almost perfect application of the Golden Section in action. The proportions ...

Composing a great photograph can be done in so many different ways that it seems more logical to talk about "guides" to composition rather than "rules" of composition. We have covered several compositional elements of photography previously such as the photographer's rule of thirds and the s-curve, but let's move on to some other less stringent "rules" for composing a great shot. These elements of an image can create spectacular results if done well.Pattern - Repetitious patterns or textures within an image can either draw or direct the viewer within a shot. In some cases it can be what makes the shot. Patterns can often be found in nature (clouds, sand, waves) and sometimes architecture and other human-made elements (farms, gardens etc).Photo by Andrew MorrellPhoto by Garry at www.visionandimagination.com Symmetry - Shots that use symmetry can often be very boring, but if you can incorporate other elements of composition such as shadow, pattern or colour then they can also be quite eye-catching. When using symmetry, look for these other elements also to add extra interest to the shotPhoto by Kicki DOF - Using depth of field well is one of the best weapons a photographer has in their arsenal. Consider which elements ...

Travel and photography go hand in hand. Who doesn't dream of taking incredible shots to wow your friends and colleagues with when you return from some exotic destination? Unfortunately, there are a few down sides to travel photography that you probably need to be aware of before you go, especially when it comes to traveling in poorer areas.Photo by Tranuf Depending on where you are going, security is going to be an issue. Sure, you are probably (but not always) reasonably safe in your own country or places like New Zealand or Europe. But in a lot of other places, especially in third world countries, the cost of your photography gear is equivalent to a year's wages (or more) for the locals.Discretion is Your FriendIt is quite staggering to see so many people whip out a $1500 camera setup to take snaps in some tourist hell in the third world. Pull your Canon DSLR with a 300mm lens out of your Lowepro backpack and you are going to attract attention! And yes, the thieves will have an opinion on Canon vs. Nikon.Photo by Yan Boechat Now, I am not saying don't take these things, but lets think of a few ways you ...

This is a guest post by New Zealand landscape photographer, Chris Gin. Some of you might recognise images from Chris' Flickr stream that we have used in our collections before.I've been into landscape photography for a couple of years now. It's a fantastic hobby and hugely rewarding, but also has a bit of a learning curve. While I would not consider myself anywhere near a pro at this stage, I've picked up on a few useful things here and there. Below are some tips which I hope others who are just starting out in the world of landscape photography will find useful. Why You Should Research Your LocationsIf you are planning a photography trip then it’s important to do some research beforehand. Use the internet to find as much information as you can about your destination. Try to identify potential places of interest and find out the best times of the year to go – some places are much more photogenic in certain seasons while others look great all year round. Try to avoid peak tourist seasons though, as busy places mean more people to get in the way of your shots. There are some great tools to help you prepare for ...

This is a guest post by New Jersey wedding photographer, Julianne Markow. Check out her photography blog here too.Bokeh is something that makes non photographers say to you “Wow, that is an amazing photograph,” and the professionals tend to agree with them. The definition of bokeh is simply “blur” and comes from the Japanese word boke, meaning “blur quality.”  Bokeh is really just a fancy way of saying that a photograph is aesthetically appealing by having a shallow depth of field.Bokeh must be done right. It is not difficult to set your camera up to do some of the work for you, but if you don’t follow these 5 tips, your results may be less than desirable.Open your lens up wide. This goes without saying. Many DSLR cameras come with a kit lens that varies from f/3.5-5.6, this means that at your shortest zoom level you can set your aperture to f3.5 and as you zoom into the subject, the aperture will change to f5.6. A 2.8 lens or faster is of course desirable, but if this is too much for your pocket to handle, remember a 5.6 kit lens can go a long way if you follow the next ...

The Wikipedia entry for stock photography describes it as, the supply of photographs licensed for specific uses. It is used to fulfill the needs of creative assignments instead of hiring a photographer. Dropping prices in high quality DLSR cameras and increasing speeds and bandwidth for the Internet, stock photography has become a second stream of income for thousands of photographers.At one point, shooting stock photography was a private club that only let certain new people in, and much of the inner-workings remained guarded under a veil of secrecy.  The general concept and approach to shooting stock hasn't changed, but the availability for anyone to contribute and sell is.  Here's what you need to know if you're interested in shooting stock.Photo by D'Arcy Norman Know your rights.  There are two ways stock is sold, royalty free and rights managed.  Royalty free does not mean you will be giving photos away for free, it simply means someone will buy a license to use your photo an unlimited, or predetermined number of times.  Royalty free also indicates that more than one person can purchase rights to use the photograph and rights to use the image are usually less than rights managed.  Rights managed photos ...

Technology has progressed photography faster in the last ten years than over the last 100.  Over the last ten years, photography has gone from a somewhat misunderstood, often thought to be overly complicated hobby to something nearly everyone takes part in.  Auto-mode settings, advancements in facial recognition in cameras and red-eye reduction built-in have made just about anyone who points a camera in the right direction a photographer.  During this ramp-up in interest, more gear has become available then ever before, both good and bad for photographers and budding hobbyists.Having the best photography gear does not mean you will get the best photographs.  This has been proven time and time again with the so-called mega-pixel race for those thinking the more mega-pixels something has, the better it is.  Sure, it's true that at a certain point, having a better piece of gear will yield you a better shot, but only if you understand how to properly use it!Photo by pasukaru76 (away for 2 weeks) Cameras, lenses, filters, flashes and all the accessories that go along with photography are nothing more than tools, tools which allow you to manipulate light and capture moments in time.  Before you start to make a really ...

One of the most important abilities you can have as a photographer is deciphering how other shooters captured their photos.  It's not always the easiest thing to do though, so here we'll look at three great photos and explain how they were taken.Photo by SergioTudelaRunning water, the beach and sunsets are all subjects that make for wonderful photographs, and this one has them all!  Taking a page almost from the difficult lighting article, this shot was done on a tripod with a wide angle lens.  Because a longer exposure was needed, 1/2 second for this shot, the risk of blowing the highlights in the surf or the sky were fairly high.  The shooter used a graduated ND filter to help prevent this from happening.  Waiting for the water to come in and then start to rush back out to see before pressing the shutter button gives a great sense of motion to the foreground of this photo while the rest of it remains sharp, with great color.Photo by nickwheelerozOne of the most popular collections here on Light Stalking was that of Bokeh Photographs.  Going one step further, this is a studio shot with self created bokeh. This stunning butterfly photo ...

Anyone who's ever been a Boyscout will tell you their motto is Always be prepared. Their motto isn't just for them, it's applicable to everyone, in just about every aspect of your life.  Planning ahead of time helps reduce problems during an event and when mishaps, accidents and problems arise, you'll have everything you need ready to deal with them.Take note here, we don't want problems to happen, but there is no way to avoid unforeseen issues which are bound to happen.  Photo shoots, especially involving people, can be very strenuous and when the photographer is stressed out, it tends to bring the whole mood down.  This is true from your hometown baby portrait photographer to a high end wedding photographer to a commercial photographer and even weekend warriors who like to go out and take landscape pictures.So, always be prepared, what does that mean exactly?  How should you be planning on what to bring?  The better question to ask yourself is, how do you envision the shoot going and what mishaps could potentially happen? For the sake of this article, let's examine an on-location portrait shoot in someone's home.You've met with the client, they like your work and they ...

For a lot of us, a trip to the zoo is going to be one of our few chances in life to photograph some fairly exotic animals from up close. The unfortunate thing is that a Zoo actually presents a fairly challenging shooting environment. Now we have covered zoo photography before, so let's concentrate on the main challenges and delve a little deeper into what they are and how you can overcome them.Wire and Fences - The probability is that you will be shooting in a city zoo and for the most part that means that many of the animals will be behind wire fences. As wire fences are usually a pretty ugly object to have obscuring the view of an animal in a photograph, you are going to want to minimize their visual impact. There are two main ways to do this.Get close enough to the fence to put your lens between the wires. This probably won't be an option for many of you with larger lenses, but you would be surprised how many different types of lenses will fit between the wire of a chicken wire fence. Remember too that some animals are territorial and doing this might ...