As mentioned in my previous post, I feel that the key emphasis as a photographer is in composition. However, no matter how good or efficient a photographer is, he or she will never get a perfect shot every time. Usually, there are more than one subject in focus, which is not encouraged. This is where mastering the art of cropping is essential.  In fact, this can be considered to be the most important function that a photographer should learn and master since it affects composition directly.

Consider this photo:

This image is captured very well. However, if you look at the photo carefully, there are two primary subjects of interest. And most photographers will usually opt for one. If not , the viewers will be confused as to what the photographer wish to tell his or her viewers. In this case, is the subject of interest the parallel pillars/long walkway on the left or or the train on the right? One of the most common mistakes that photographers make is in making viewers decide where to look. More often than not, the photographer should decide for the viewers (unless it’s a scenic shot whereby the viewers are invited to appreciate every aspect of the image).

In this instance, I personally feel that this photo should look best in a “portrait” rather than “landscape” format because of the parallel structure to its left. In addtion, the parallel pillars/long walkway should be a better subject of interest (there’s no wrong or right answers. Everything is based on one’s aesthetics preferences) as the part of the train to the right of the photo looks dull, despite the colour red which is usually striking. Therefore, I will choose to crop the image of the train on the right, leaving the image in a “portrait” format like this:

Now, we will have an image with one primary subject of focus.

As mentioned previously, there are no right or wrong answers. Cropping is merely the effort of the photographers to align what the viewers see with what they see.