In the case of street and travel photography the choice of subject is usually more intuitive and, almost always, involves photographing strangers.Ī critical question which needs to be addressed is the difference between subject and object in photography.Īn object is a visual element within a photo, while the subject of that photo is what the image is actually about.Įxamples of objects that might inhabit part or all of the photographic frame might include the following: Of course, in the world of wedding and portrait photography, the subject matter is the customer and they choose the photographer based largely upon trust and budget. The subject of a photograph might be chosen by the photographer or, in the case of most commercial assignments, by the client to achieve a particular look. People photos including formal portraits, candid moments and sports photography, Wildlife photo that features a waddle of King penguins on South Georgia Island.Īrchitectural details from the sublime Temple Of Heaven in Beijing, China. Landscape photo showcasing a iceberg in Greenland. Here’s just a few examples to fire your imagination.
You can photograph all manner of interesting subject matter across all genres of photography. The theme that follows concerns damage to our environment and, arguably, explores how all man made objects (eventually) return to nature. To enhance that narrative I’ve employed color, shape and surface textures to visually engage the viewer and bring them into the story. The story being told involves the fact that the ship is now in an otherwise pristine natural landscape. The primary object depicted is the old, rusty ship. While the photo of the old ship contains both natural and man made subject matter, I'd argue that it's the characteristics (e.g., warm and cool, hard and soft) inherent within those elements that become the most important subjects within the picture. By understanding what your photos are about you’ll be more able to understand your own, unique worldview. The hardness of stone and ship compared to the smoother areas of water and skyĪ large part of the creative journey involves self discovery. The smoothness of the water and sky against the highly textured rock The man made ship within the natural landscape It's these kinds of dualities (i.e., opposites) that give our images an added dynamic and a greater sense of visual potency. We can describe this relationship between warm and cool colors in this particular photo as being high in color contrast.Ĭolor is so important in this image that I think it’s just as much subject matter as the ship, mountains, sky and water.įrom a story telling or narrative point of view there's also a range of other contrasts within this image that are worth exploring. You might even say that complimentary colors seem to vibrate against each other producing, as a result, a more dramatic image. The cool colors seem to make the warm colors even warmer. In the case of the photo at the very top of this post you can see the warm (i.e., orange) and cool (i.e., blue) colors within the scene and how well those colors compliment each other. Just as opposites (e.g., male and female) attract and can form harmonious relationships, so to can seemingly disparate elements within the frame. We can describe that particular relationship as follows: The term complimentary can be used to describe the notion of opposites in photography.įor example, there’s the relationship between primary colors and the complimentary colors that sit directly opposite them on the color wheel. The orange color of the ship is illuminated by the gentle sunlight and presents a striking contrast against the predominantly bluish light from gathering storm clouds.Īs we’ll discover this photo explores notions of subject and object in photography and shows how important composition is to making great photos.
I photographed this old ship, now no more than a rusting hulk, in the Beagle Channel near the city of Ushuaia in the far south of Argentina. To help us better understand the importance of subject in photography let’s deconstruct the above photo. Techniques you can employ to clearly define the primary subject matter in your photos include the following:
Technique, composition and choice of background need to be considered to better convey the feeling or mood the photographer wants to explore in the photograph. The term subject matter in photography relates to the primary object that’s photographed or the primary point of interest onto which the photographer's lens is focused. What is subject matter in photography and how can you use composition to better define subject in your photos?
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