Isolate the Focal Point
I know what you??™re wondering: what is the focal point? The focal point is the main subject of
your picture, such as a building or perhaps a person. In other words, the focal point is the main
point of interest that the viewer??™s eye is drawn to when looking at your picture.
You should always strive to consider what the focal point of your picture is and then plan
your photos accordingly. In my experience, the single biggest problem with photographs taken
by new photographers is that they fail to consider what their subject actually is. When you
don??™t know what you??™re taking a picture of, it??™s hard to emphasize that element in the final
composition. That leads to muddy, confused arrangements in which there is nothing specific for
the viewer to look at. Take a look at Figure 4-2, for instance. In the image on the left, there is
no real focal point, and thus there is nothing for the viewer to concentrate on. The photographer
should have decided what the subject was and then rearranged the image to emphasize that.
Indeed, all I would ask of this picture is, ???Why did the photographer take it???? Contrast that with
the image on the right, which has a specific subject to draw your eye.
FIGURE 4-1 Changing the composition of a picture by turning the camera 90 degrees can
completely change the effect a photograph has on its viewer.
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