JRN 411 Photo Composition Project

At the student paper where I serve as News Editor – The Oakland Post – there is one specific rule that always must be adhered to if a story is going to be published. Every article must have a multimedia element.

A corresponding photo not only strengthens a piece overall, but it allows the reader to visualize what has occurred in the story. While journalists are always taught to paint vivid images with their writing, as the old saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words – and most editors will cap an article at about 500.

While most publications have photographers on staff, a reporter may not always have the luxury of having someone on site to simply shoot photos. In fact, as the trend of papers consolidating continues, some publications are unfortunately laying off their entire staff of photographers, as seen here and here.

Therefore, journalists today must be ready to not only write, tweet, and collect quotes while covering a story, but they must also be ready and willing to take photos.

While it may sound difficult to immediately be ready to shoot for a story, following some of these principles will help.

This slideshow will explore three specific principles, the rule of thirds, utilizing lines, and avoiding mergers.

When looking through the lens of a camera, simply divide the area of a potential picture into thirds, both vertically and horizontally. It is almost as if imagining a tic-tac-toe board over top of the frame.

When looking for a great picture to couple with a piece, it is important to remember that lines can really change a photo from just good to great. Diagonal lines are easy on the eye of the viewer, and allow for an easy path to be followed in the picture.

Last but certainly not least, it is important to avoid mergers.

Tree branches, light poles, and in the case of this slideshow – a historic landmark – all unfortunately can emerge from a photo subject’s head or body accidentally. It is very important to avoid these embarrassing mergers, which can usually be accomplished by simply changing the angle of a shoot.

It is important to note that a very expensive camera is not needed for quality photos. All of the examples in this slideshow were taken either with a cheap digital camera or a smartphone!