>> Oh, pish-posh and balderdash. Great photographers no more think about "rules >> of composition" than great composers think about their childhood >> finger-exercises or great golfers think about the angle of their shin-bone. >> How many great poets do you think can diagram a sentence? >> >> If anyone in my hearing right now is troubling their brains about some >> species of nattering nonsense they read in some dreadful little >> all-about-photography book somewhere, please take my advice: FORGET ALL >> ABOUT IT. You can't reduce pictures meaningfully to "rules of thumb," either >> before or after the fact. > > > With all respect, the above is pure nonsense. Whether or not the "rules" are > done consciously or not has nothing to do with it. You cannot compose music > arbitarily; you cannot photograph without adhering to some relations > successfully; you cannot design a car without getting the proportions "right" > etc. All this provided you want anyone else besides yourself to appreciate > your work. > You don't have to be aware of the rules to apply them. However, being aware > help you to progress with whatever artistic expression you participate in.
Fine. You think there are rules of composition? Okay, tell me what they are. List them. I'd like to know what they are. --Mike
