Lesson Info
93. Foreground & Background & Scale
Summary (Generated from Transcript)
The lesson discusses the importance of foreground and background in photography, and how it can add depth and tell stories in a photograph. It emphasizes the use of foreground to provide scale and perspective, and to show the relationship between different subjects in the frame.
Q&A:
What is the significance of foreground and background in photography?
Foreground and background add depth and dimension to a photograph, making it more interesting and engaging.
How does photography capture three-dimensional scenes?
Photography can only capture two dimensions, but our brains can interpret and imagine the third dimension based on the visual cues in the photograph.
How can foreground be used to tell a story in a photograph?
By including a subject in the foreground, the photograph can convey a narrative and provide context to the overall scene.
What is the purpose of including a human figure or object in the foreground?
Including a human figure or object in the foreground provides scale and perspective, allowing viewers to understand the size and magnitude of the subjects in the photograph.
How can foreground and background be used in landscape photography?
In landscape photography, foreground and background can work together to showcase the grandeur of the scenery while also including a point of reference for viewers to relate to.
Can foreground and background be used to show relationships between subjects?
Yes, by positioning different subjects in the foreground and background, photographers can visually depict the relationship and interaction between the subjects.
How can foreground contribute to the overall composition of a photograph?
By carefully choosing and composing the foreground elements, photographers can create a sense of depth, balance, and visual interest in the photograph.
Lessons
Class Introduction
23:32 2Photographic Characteristics
06:46 3Camera Types
03:03 4Viewing System
22:09 5Lens System
24:38 6Shutter System
12:56 7Shutter Speed Basics
10:16 8Shutter Speed Effects
31:57Camera & Lens Stabilization
11:06 10Quiz: Shutter Speeds
07:55 11Camera Settings Overview
16:12 12Drive Mode & Buffer
04:24 13Camera Settings - Details
10:21 14Sensor Size: Basics
18:26 15Sensor Sizes: Compared
24:52 16The Sensor - Pixels
22:49 17Sensor Size - ISO
26:59 18Focal Length
11:36 19Angle of View
31:29 20Practicing Angle of View
04:59 21Quiz: Focal Length
08:15 22Fisheye Lens
12:32 23Tilt & Shift Lens
20:37 24Subject Zone
13:16 25Lens Speed
09:03 26Aperture
08:25 27Depth of Field (DOF)
21:46 28Quiz: Apertures
08:22 29Lens Quality
07:06 30Light Meter Basics
09:04 31Histogram
11:48 32Quiz: Histogram
09:07 33Dynamic Range
07:25 34Exposure Modes
35:15 35Sunny 16 Rule
04:31 36Exposure Bracketing
08:08 37Exposure Values
20:01 38Quiz: Exposure
20:44 39Focusing Basics
13:08 40Auto Focus (AF)
24:39 41Focus Points
17:18 42Focus Tracking
19:26 43Focusing Q&A
06:40 44Manual Focus
07:14 45Digital Focus Assistance
07:35 46Shutter Speeds & Depth of Field (DOF)
05:18 47Quiz: Depth of Field
15:54 48DOF Preview & Focusing Screens
04:55 49Lens Sharpness
11:08 50Camera Movement
11:29 51Advanced Techniques
15:15 52Quiz: Hyperfocal Distance
07:14 53Auto Focus Calibration
05:15 54Focus Stacking
07:58 55Quiz: Focus Problems
18:54 56Camera Accessories
32:41 57Lens Accessories
29:24 58Lens Adaptors & Cleaning
13:14 59Macro
13:02 60Flash & Lighting
04:47 61Tripods
14:13 62Cases
06:07 63Being a Photographer
11:29 64Natural Light: Direct Sunlight
28:37 65Natural Light: Indirect Sunlight
15:57 66Natural Light: Mixed
04:20 67Twilight: Sunrise & Sunset Light
22:21 68Cloud & Color Pop: Sunrise & Sunset Light
06:40 69Silhouette & Starburst: Sunrise & Sunset Light
07:28 70Golden Hour: Sunrise & Sunset Light
07:52 71Quiz: Lighting
05:42 72Light Management
10:46 73Flash Fundamentals
12:06 74Speedlights
04:12 75Built-In & Add-On Flash
10:47 76Off-Camera Flash
25:48 77Off-Camera Flash For Portraits
15:36 78Advanced Flash Techniques
08:22 79Editing Assessments & Goals
08:57 80Editing Set-Up
06:59 81Importing Images
03:59 82Organizing Your Images
32:41 83Culling Images
13:57 84Categories of Development
30:59 85Adjusting Exposure
08:03 86Remove Distractions
04:02 87Cropping Your Images
09:53 88Composition Basics
26:36 89Point of View
28:56 90Angle of View
14:35 91Subject Placement
23:22 92Framing Your Shot
07:27 93Foreground & Background & Scale
03:51 94Rule of Odds
05:00 95Bad Composition
07:31 96Multi-Shot Techniques
19:08 97Pixel Shift, Time Lapse, Selective Cloning & Noise Reduction
12:24 98Human Vision vs The Camera
23:32 99Visual Perception
10:43 100Quiz: Visual Balance
14:05 101Visual Drama
16:45 102Elements of Design
09:24 103Texture & Negative Space
03:57 104Black & White & Color
10:33 105The Photographic Process
09:08 106Working the Shot
25:29 107What Makes a Great Photograph?
07:01Lesson Info
Foreground & Background & Scale
All right, the next concept, we've talked a little bit about this, is foreground and background. And we talked a little bit in rule of thirds where you might have a subject in one part of the frame and another subject in the other part of the frame. And so thinking about what's in the foreground and background and having some depth to your photographs. Now photography is tough because we're dealing with two dimensions. And I don't know of anytime soon that we're gonna be going into three-dimensional photography. It's perfectly capable. I see people out there shooting. About every ten years, I'm told that 3D TV's gonna be the next hot thing and then they're not the next thing. But the way we view the world is just very easy to see it in two dimensions. And that's perfectly fine because that adds to the mystery. We don't know what it looked like in 3D, but our brains can kind of make it up. We can figure it out in most cases. And so this is going back tactically. It's that hyperfocal dis...
tance, stopping down, keeping things in the foreground as well as the background in focus. But you can think about this for a lot of different ways of telling stories. Having a subject in the foreground and what's in the background. So it's more than just one thing that's going on in a photo. And so I like these buildings. They're interesting buildings. But you know what, let's wait, two, three, five, ten, half an hour for the right cars to come by so that we have something interesting in the foreground. And so foregrounds can be very, very important. So sometimes we want to hide how big or small a subject is. Sometimes we wanna put it in perspective so that people understand what they're looking at. And so shooting the pyramids off from the side location is great because I get this nice compressed view of the pyramids. But having that one camel out there with that person out there really lends a scale to it that makes it seems a little bit more majestic. Because without it, put my hand over it there, you're not really sure on how it relates to you in size. When I was down in San Francisco I thought it very interesting there were some people surfing right under the Golden Gate Bridge. And so I think it's just great seeing that huge bridge up behind them. And the people don't need to be very big because humans are very adept at spotting a small human figure. That's probably the shape that we are most easily able to lock onto. And you can actually identify somebody from a mile away if you see them moving if you have a clear view a mile away, you could see by the way that they're moving. And so just including that one extra human down there show the scale of that particular situation. And so these are really a lot of favorite type photographs for adventure photographers and hiking type magazines. You want the big mountain landscape, but show me where I can fit in there as well. So that can work with humans. It can work with animals, just to show the type of environment that it's in. So that one lonely bit. That's like the same photograph right there in a completely different place. It's that same formula again. One of my strange adventures is riding my bike across Alaska. And we had to ride the Haul Road, which is a 414-mile gravel road across the northern part of Alaska. And one of the things we had to be careful of was the large trucks. And so I did a whole little documentary about this entire trip. And part of it was, okay, here's a little cyclist and big 18-wheelers kicking up gigantic rocks on this road. And so you wanted to show the relationship between one subject and the other subject.
Class Materials
Bonus Materials with Purchase
Ratings and Reviews
a Creativelive Student
Love love all John Greengo classes! Wish to have had him decades ago with this info, but no internet then!! John is the greatest photography teacher I have seen out there, and I watch a lot of Creative Live classes and folks on YouTube too. John is so detailed and there are a ton of ah ha moments for me and I know lots of others. I think I own 4 John Greengo classes so far and want to add this one and Travel Photography!! I just drop everything to watch John on Creative Live. I wish sometime soon he would teach a Lightroom class and his knowledge on photography post editing.!!! That would probably take a LOT OF TIME but I know John would explain it soooooo good, like he does all his Photography classes!! Thank you Creative Live for having such a wonderful instructor with John Greengo!! Make more classes John, for just love them and soak it up! There is soooo much to learn and sometimes just so overwhelming. Is there anyway you might do a Motivation class!!?? Like do this button for this day, and try this technique for a week, or post this subject for this week, etc. Motivation and inspiration, and playing around with what you teach, needed so much and would be so fun.!! Just saying??? Awaiting gadgets class now, while waiting for lunch break to be over. All the filters and gadgets, oh my. Thank you thank you for all you teach John, You are truly a wonderful wonderful instructor and I would highly recommend folks listening and buying your classes.
Eve
I don't think that adjectives like beautiful, fantastic or excellent can describe the course and classes with John Greengo well enough. I've just bought my first camera and I am a total amateur but I fell in love with photography while watching the classes with John. It is fun, clear, understandable, entertaining, informative and and and. He is not only a fabulous photographer but a great teacher as well. Easy to follow, clear explanations and fantastic visuals. The only disadvantage I can list here that he is sooooo good that keeps me from going out to shoot as I am just glued to the screen. :-) Don't miss it and well worth the money invested! Thank you John!
JUAN SOL
Dear John, thanks for this outstanding classes. You are not only a great photographer and instructor, but your classes are pleasant, they are not boring, with a good sense of humor, they go straight to the point and have a good time listening to you. Please, keep teaching what you like most, and I will continue to look for your classes. And thanks for using a plain English, that it's important for people who has another language as native language. Thanks again, Juan