Composition is the Key with Rick Sammon

Photos and Words by Rick Sammon, A Platypod Pro
Edited by Eryka Bagwell

“Famed photographer Edward Weston suggested, 'Composition is the strongest way of seeing.'”

“Renowned photographer Art Wolfe suggests, 'Using creative cropping, we can usually find several pictures in one picture.'”

“Platypod inventor Dr. Larry T. recommends, 'Putting your camera in one spot and trying to come up with three different compositions.'”

“I say, 'Want to get good at composition? Go back to the same place again and again, and don’t come home without a new and different photograph.'”

“With all these thoughts in mind, especially Larry’s, I headed, for perhaps the 1,000^th time in 40 years, to the New Croton Dam (five minutes from our home) for an early afternoon photo session in early May.”

“Picking my one spot, I attached my Platypod eXtreme (using the included strap) to the chain link fence that runs along the water flow at the bottom of the dam. Then I mounted the Platypod Grip, designed to hold smartphones, on my Platypod eXtreme.”

“Next, I set my iPhone 14 Pro into the Grip. Because I wanted to blur the movement of the water and clouds, I used the EvenLonger app and set a shutter speed of one minute. Then I started to experiment with different compositions.”

“The picture that opens this post was my first shot. It was taken at the .5x lens setting.” (Seen above).

“This much tighter shot of a small tree and several of the steps on the dam, and it was taken at the 3x lens setting, and then cropped.”

“For perhaps a more artistic photograph, I took a tight shot of a section of the rocks, accented by the flowing water. This shot was taken at a 5x lens setting (actually the 3x setting but pinched to zoom).”

“So, my friends, keep in mind all the suggestions that open this post. They will help you look more carefully when you are composing – and cropping - your photographs.”

Platypod Pro., Rick Sammon has authored 43 books, including Photo Therapy Motivation and Wisdom – discovering the power of pictures. You can order Rick’s book through his site: https://ricksammon.com.