THE ART OF
PHOTOGRAPHY
PHOTOGRAPHERS LEARN
HOW TO CREATE VISUAL ART
WITH CAMERAS.

Objectives you will learn:
• About the elements of art and the principles of
design.
• How to use these elements and principles to make
photographs.
• Understanding the elements and the principles
will make your photography more than just
snapshots.
PHOTOGRAPHY IS MORE
THAN COMBINING
CAMERAS, LENSES, AND
FILM OR MEMORY CARDS;
IT IS ABOUT USING TOOLS
IN COMBINATION WITH
THE ELEMENTS OF ART
AND PRINCIPLES OF
DESIGN TO CREATE VISUAL
ART. UNDERSTANDING THE
ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES
OF DESIGN TO CREATE
VISUAL ART.

KEY TERMS
 Balance
 Composition
 Cool colors
 Warm colors
 Hue
 Pictorialism
 Proportion
 Rule of thirds
 Saturation
 Value

COMPOSITION
 Refers to the arrangement and relationship of different
parts that make up the whole image.
 In visual art terms, composition is divided into two
areas, The elements of art, which are the compositions
individual parts and the principles of design which are
the composition’s organizing ideas.
 In photography, composition is the arrangement of
visual elements within the frame of the viewfinder.
Edward Weston described
composition as simply
“the strongest way of seeing”

ELEMENTS OF ART
The elements of art, which are the compositions individual parts.
 Line
 Shape and Form
 Value
 Color
 Space
 Texture

PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN
The principles of design which are the composition’s organizing ideas.
 Balance
 Unity
 Variety
 Movement and Rhythm
 Emphasis
 Proportion
 Pattern

LINE
Strokes that show motion and connect two
points.
May be vertical, horizontal or diagonal, curved,
straight, zigzag, or show emotion.

SHAPE/ FORM
Shows an object in space, the mass or positive
space it occupies. The term usually used when
describing 3-d objects.

Value
 The lightness of darkness of an object or
color.

COLOR

SPACE
What is between
objects, as know as
negative space.

TEXTURE
 The feel, real or
implied, on an object
or its surface.

RULE OF THIRDS
The rule of thirds is one of
the main “rules” in art and
photographic composition
and stems from the theory
that the human eye naturally
gravitates to intersection
points that occur when an
image is split into thirds.
Vocabulary-Term

BALANCE
Is the concept of visual
equilibrium and relates to
our physical sense of
balance.
Most successful
compositions achieve
balance in one of two
ways: symmetrically or
asymmetrically.

UNITY
 The feeling of
wholeness of the
parts belonging
together.

VARIETY
 The use of different lines, shapes,
and colors in a piece of work.
 Works with pattern to make the
work of art seem active. The
repetition of elements of design
creates unity within the work of
art.

MOVEMENT AND
RHYTHM
The repetition of lines, shapes, or colors
to create a feeling of movement.
Is created when one or more elements of
design are used repeatedly to create a
feeling of organized movement.
Rhythm creates a mood like music or
dancing.
To keep rhythm exciting and active,
variety is essential.

PATTERN
 utilizes elements that are repeated.
 The repetition of lines, shapes, tones
or color can create interesting images.
 There are photographers who use the
pattern as the main subject of an
image while others use it to enhance
the overall composition and look of
the photograph.
 Photographers can choose to
emphasize or break the pattern to
capture a great image.

EMPHASIS
One of the most
important decisions in
taking a photograph is to
decide what your image
is about, and what its
emphasis will be.

PROPORTION
Is the feeling of unity created when
all parts (sizes, or amounts,) relate
well within each other.
When drawing the human figure,
proportion can refer to the size of the
head compared to the rest of the
body.