Composition
LS 50: Learning From the Masters
Summary In this session we study two of my most influential photographers, Philip Hyde and Brett Weston, to see how masters distill an image down to its essence. We look at why Hyde chose reverence over drama, how Brett used deep shadows and abstraction to make form the subject, and why vertical is a compositional…
Read MoreLS #48: Mastering Composition—Simplicity
Summary Simplicity isn’t about emptiness or removing things. It’s about clarity, making sure one idea dominates and everything else supports it. In this session I walk through four ways to simplify a picture: exclusion, dominance, tonal hierarchy, and form and space. We work through examples from Hopper, Sugimoto, Fan Ho, Ernst Haas, Michael Kenna, and…
Read MoreLS #46: Mastering Composition—Leading the Viewer
In This Session In this session, we explore the art of leading your viewer through the frame with real intention and purpose. I walk through my LCU framework, showing how composition is really orchestration, guiding the eye through variation, contrast, and light rather than relying on obvious leading lines. Key Takeaways Session Supplement: https://creativepathworkshops.com/lab/supplements/ls46-leading-the-viewer/ Questions,…
Read MoreYour Camera Documents—You Interpret
I spent my first few years as a photographer trying to capture what was in front of me. Point the camera at the waterfall, get the exposure right, make sure it’s sharp. If everything was technically sound, I’d consider it a success. But those images felt hollow. Accurate, maybe, but not what I really wanted—and…
Read MoreLS 38: Learning From the Masters—Color & Atmosphere
Summary In this session, we explore how master artists and photographers use color to create atmosphere and mood in their work. Drawing from painters like Monet and Shishkin, alongside photographers Ernst Haas, Elliot Porter, yesand others, I break down the difference between literal atmosphere and the emotional kind we feel when an image truly resonates.…
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