What makes a good photo?

It’s difficult. How does one determine what makes a good photo? There are so many different genres of photography. So many different things to look out for. Some people think of good photos based on different categories. I don’t see it that way. Every category has good photos. There are beautiful portraits, wildlife and landscapes. Often, without realising, many of the same rules apply though. In this post, I will discuss what makes a good photo to me.

To determine what makes a good photo, there are different rules that apply. Things such as light, colors and composition play a huge part, regardless of which genre you are in.
Regardless of the photos I’m taking, I always try to look out for the placement of my subject. How can I place the subject, in order to create the most interesting photo? To determine that I often look for lines and frames. Take the photo above as an example. The road resembles an s, which works as a leading line, towards our subject which is the deer behind the tree. Had the deer not been there, it would have been a beautiful photo nevertheless, however a landscape photo and not a wildlife.

We know a good photo when we see one. The human eye is naturally drawn towards visually pleasing images, and often we like something before we even know why. I believe that we are able to determine that in a split second, due to shapes, colors, lines and so on.

If we look at this photo as another example, there is again made use of a leading line. Starting from the bottom right corner, we follow the shape of the mans leg, onto his arm, and then towards his face. When we look at the photo, this is not the way we think of it. However subconsciously we are able to make it out, without even realising.

Besides from that, all the dark areas in the photo work as a frame, encompassing the most important part of the photo.

Bothe of these help put attention towards the face of the man, which is exactly what we want.

This photo, completely different to the other two, but it is the same rules that apply. In this case, the leaves from the tree in the top help create a frame, while the bushes and trees on the ground create a leading line. Besides from that we have two persons in the foreground, creating a bit of scale, and more interest in the photo.

So we have three completely different photos. Three different genres. But still, it is the same rules that apply in the photos. And this is without even talking about light and color combinations.
Color theory is an entire article in itself. But basically we have a set of different color combinations that make for the most visually pleasing photos. Each color combination is build around certain colors, and each give different results.

If we take the last photo as an example I have made use of what is known as analogous colors. Analogous colors is basically choosing three colors that sit next to each other on the coloring wheel. In this case, green is my main color, but I also have light blue tones, and more yellow/green tones.
The result is often a photo in great harmony.

Another thing that also goes again in each of the photos is light and thereby our highlights and shadows. Light is one of the most important parts of photography, and having good light can give you an entirely different photo.

This is one of the best examples of how light plays an integral part. Even with bad light, this would have been a good photo. However the light, in my opinion makes this photo amazing.

So what makes a good photo? I guess we are all build differently, and therefor value different things. However I also believe that the human mind is naturally drawn towards visually pleasing photos, and therefor the aspects mentioned play an integral part.

On assignment in Iceland

What to look for in wildlife photography