Be sure to watch the background for distracting objects
Photo by Ben Yoder

So you just took that great picture of your little boy, and think "Awesome, got it!" Then you walk away from the scene. When you get home that night, you put the picture up on the screen, and notice that big light post growing out of the top of his head. Time to break out Photoshop...

There is an easy solution that no one ever seems to think about before they snap that picture: the background. We get so focused on the subject at hand, and how it is going to look that we almost dismiss the background of the picture as unimportant.

When I was snapping some photos of Kira, I ended up with the opening composition shown above. This is a great example of what not to do! I took a few shots, looked at my LCD on my camera, and shouted a quick expletive. What's wrong? Well, two main things: the playground in the background is a distracting element; that one's easy to see. The other problem that many don't notice is the horizon line - in this picture, it is the top of the fence - is going right through her head, and is in no way acting as a leading line to her eyes (which are noticeably lower than the horizon). So how do you fix it? Well, the easiest (and probably best) way is to change where you are standing.

The picture to the left is much better, offering no playground, and no horizon line to cut off her head! All I had to do to come up with this composition was to get out of the chair I was sitting in and get on the ground. Now, some of you may be thinking "I don't need to get the picture badly enough to get my clothes dirty," but, as you can see, it's worth it! Immediately the composition is better, and there are no distracting elements in your picture. If you truly are afraid of getting your clothes dirty, either wear old clothes to go out and shoot, or bring a towel.

The other main blunder that always seems to go unnoticed, as alluded to earlier, are things "growning" out of your subject. This happens because there is something with height greater than your subject, such as a tree or light pole, that is directly behind your subject; the eye wants to see what it is used to, like the tree being rooted into the ground, not your subject's head.

The picture below illustrates the problem exactly. While we all know that the chain behind the subject is anchored to the swing he is sitting on, it looks bad to our eyes because it looks as though it is growing out of his head:

Unfortunately, there is little room in this particular case to move the subject in the swing to fix the problem. I really should have moved on, but the best fix in this case (once I already have the photo) is to open it in Photoshop and break out the clone tool. This is a less than ideal option, though, because it means more time at the computer and less time taking pictures!

So next time you are out looking at a scene and placing your subject in it, remember to look at the background and watch out for what is behind your subject. Your pictures will thank you.

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Check out these other articles by Ben:

The world's first compact camera with a built in projector

On location at Gahanna's Creekside Park

When will Megapixels stop growing?