Horizons

[Morsie]

I mentioned in Lauren’s question on landscape tips that I think using the horizon correctly is one of my key points for good landscapes. It applies even more to seascapes. The horizon straightening function in most processing programs is usually the first one I have to go to, I’m pretty bad with horizons and apart from having a crooked head there’s a reason for that, I’m usually intent in how the fish is being held or the composition or the facial expression. These days I also do a lot of shooting from down low or up high to try and avoid having the horizon go through the head of the subject.

Here’s a couple of potentially really good images that are really second grade because of the positioning of the subject and the horizon – in the first the heads of the two anglers are just lost in the trees and in the second the head of Tabuki the guide is jammed in a strip of blue between sea and cloud. Both these shots could have been saved by holding the camera high. If your standing on level ground and you hold the camera at your eye level the horizon will go through the head of someone of much the same height.

Here’s what I mean by getting above or below the horizon.

But my favourites are when you can just get rid of the horizon altogether.

Morsie 🙂

[kurt budliger]

Sweet shots and sound advice, your examples are perfect.

[Corey Kruitbosch]

Great shots AND great examples!

[Rich Kovars]

Nice advice.

[Rob Snowhite]

i would like to go photographing with y’all more than fishing!

i’ve always tried to base my horizon shots on the claude monet painting, ‘Garden at Sainte-Adresse’ as he divided (noticeably like the french flag) the division between sea, land, and sky.

i use the graph in my view finder to divide the scene accordingly and move my body/camera up and down just enough to get the horizon divided.

here are some of mine from the internets:

her hat is just a smidge too high

[Chad Simcox]

Great tip and perfect examples. It’s funny how

http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.

http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
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[Morsie]

Rob I love your use of the horizon, great composition and I guess thats what its really about.

Chad you’re closer to Baja than I am. I reckon that would be pretty bloody cool. Some dramatic landscapes down there from what I’ve seen, and of course there’s the fishing.

Morsie

[Neal Osborn]

Thanks Morsie (and Rob and others), great topic . . .  as always.  I’m taking notes. By the way, that last picture in the first set (saltwater fly casting) is just flat out awesome.  And Rob, your tight in compositions are very intriguing.

Hey, I want to take this topic one step further.  What about using horizons or “planes” to create an off sense of motion in an image?  I’m talking about about the creative application of skew rather than the unwanted sense of sea sickness that we get with incorrect application of the horizon shot on tilt.  

Here is an example of what I’m talking about.  Recently, I have been shooting my fly art stuff with skewed planes and it really seems to add a sense of movement/motion to the flies.  Anyone have examples or thoughts on how we could purposely skew a landscape shot to add interest without straining the viewer?

[Morsie]

Neal I’ve noticed a few magazines using really skewed horizon images, I’m a bit old fashioned I’m afraid, I find myself reaching for the horizon straightening function tool  😀 I guess on the macro stuff its something you could get away with provided the composition was also good.

In your image here if the fly was coming down a slope towards the bottom right hand corner I could deal with it but as I see it that large dark area top right is really distracting. Not only is the horizon on a slope but the composition is out of balance too, it makes me want to fall off my chair.  😉  🙂

This is a deliberately skewed horizon image, Dave Anderson took the pic with my camera when were mucking around on the Tongariro trying to do some different stuff. It works – just. I think it works because of the flow and direction of the river in the BG.

Morsie

[Neal Osborn]

That’s a great point about the importance of correctly placing the dead space and making sure the background lines flow with the subject.  Never noticed it in that fly image until you pointed out that the plane of the fly is tangential to the horizon, resulting in a feeling of falling down a slope – unnatural really.  That’s the funny thing about rules – they are there for a reason and breaking them requires careful planning.  Again, this is a great topic, it has really got me thinking.  

[anonymous]

Great thread:)

[Chad Simcox]

Morsie, that shot in general has a dynamic composition which makes it a good shot.

http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.

http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox Instagram

[David Anderson]

Morsie, I thought the interest in that shot was the fish and the double hander and wasn’t concerned with the horizon.
(or was falling over from old age ;D)

The top of the fish is flattened out to make it work as a possible cover..

This is my version with the tilt – a little wider and a bit sloppy..

www.dsaphoto.com

A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.

[Chad Simcox]

Dave that one you posted looks a bit loose as a stand alone shot, but has plenty of room for logo and copy, that it would make a great cover shot without feeling cluttered.

http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.

http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox Instagram

[John Bennett]

Personally I think Chad hit the nail on the head with his first post when he said he tries to keep it simple by using the rule of thirds.

Then he followed that, by super imposing a kick ass graphic that illustrates it.

The BG, the horizon,etc

[Zach Matthews]

Hey guys –

Things got a little heated there–unnecessarily.

[Author]

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