BAPH UNIT 1: Photographic Practices Assignment 2 – “Hygge”

FEEDBACK FROM TUTOR

I have been doing photography for many years before starting the course and you can read more in my about me page.
I accepted the feedback but after that I sent my tutor the following message:

“Thank you for your feedback and taking the time to grade my assignment, I appreciate everything that you said.

I understand most of it but there is one part that left me a bit confused, and I was wondering if you can further explain what you mean. You said – *“Your compositions could be improved by resorting to several techniques. Please take a look at your course materials – 3. Principles of Taking a Photograph – The Rules of Photographic Composition (pdf) as it
contains very useful rules that you can apply in order to improve your work”*

Here is another version of my final images showing with colorful lines the compositional rules or more correctly described as guidelines, that I already implemented in each photo at the time I was creating it –

I could have done this for the rest of the photographs within my .pdf too, in which you can see at least one compositional guideline being used, but I assume that the feedback is related to my final images since this is the part that it’s said that I didn’t achieve.

Now even though some of the guidelines I used may be possible to miss, I think that at least the fact that I have placed my primary subject in the center of the frame, or as the course calls it – center dominant eye, is quite easy to spot in the images, even without the additional lines that I added.

I like the rule of thirds, but I am not obsessed with it, it is not the only one and I have no intention of using it in every single photograph… Unless the course really demands it, I guess…

I used the rule of thirds and a more plain scene deliberately only in one image, while the other 3 have more guidelines in common, and are progressing to slightly busier scenes. I did that to show in a subtle and gradual way that even though the plain simple version of a Hygge photograph and a typical Jewish holiday scene photograph share commonalities, there
are still differences between them.

I personally believe that implementing any more compositional guidelines would have been a bit over the top, especially for the busiest holiday scene. So, I am slightly confused, and I would like to ask –

Could you please be more specific about what exactly do you see as an improved composition by resorting to several techniques listed in the 3. Principles of Taking a Photograph – The Rules of Photographic Composition (pdf).? And what was it about my work that suggested to you, that I am not familiar with them, or that I have not applied them already?

Thank you very much, hope to hear from you soon :)”

His replay was:

“Hi Esther,
I do believe that your work would benefit from “simpler” and “less crowdy” compositions.
Also, cleaner and blurred backgrounds can help ie page 20 and also on the white balance exercise.
You have correctly applied several rules of photographic composition. In my opinion, the only thing missing is cleaner compositions and backgrounds.
As an example, and for inspiration too, have a look at the works of Katya Havok.
Hope this helps!
Kind regards”

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