Foreground Framing, or Subframing
PHOTO CHALLENGE | Options for foreground or subframing:
Put an object in front of your camera lens
Look for natural framing options, like a window or doorway
Adjust your composition, see what’s around you
Look for layers that can be shifted to isolate a focal point
Consider background options for framing
Foreground framing is one of my favorite artistic compositional techniques to use in photography. Knowing that I like to shoot with a shallow depth of field, the range and variety of images I can take with simply being intentional about the scene around me, are endless. Now obviously you don’t only have to use a shallow DoF (or a low aperture), but that is usually my personal preference, because I like the results.
There are a number of reasons you might want to create a frame of sorts in your image, but what’s important to note is that photos are two-dimensional, and sub-framing creates more dimension. It’s all too easy and common for a photo to be left completely flat and uninteresting, even if the subject holds potential. Sub-framing can create dimension, depth, isolate your subject, and interest.
Compare the two images below. If we’re just talking interest here, it’s hard to deny that the bottom photo has quite a bit more intrigue than the top. Between the light caught on the leaves in the foreground, and the feeling of putting you in the scene (it’s as if you’re looking through something with the photographer, not just at something), suddenly your eyes are searching and observing much more. Take a moment to think through your response to each image.
There is no right or wrong way to shoot through a foreground or create some sense of a subframe, in fact, there are endless creative options that go beyond the most obvious options, like intentionally placing a glass in front of the lens or looking for layers you can compose as a type of framing. The role of any rule of composition is to draw the eye into a photograph and this is your ultimate goal for sub-framing. Lastly, framing refers to using elements of a scene to create a frame within your frame, whatever that might look like to you.