How to crop photos for function and meaning

Before&After BAmagazine.com ® i U X Cropping basics PixTrix1 For the LOVE of the GAME A CENTURY OF BASEBALL How to crop photos for function and meaning Continued  JASON HARTFORD Continued  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix BAmagazine.com of 10 i U X Unify Crop mugs the same size Start with the picture that has the least cropping room, and make the others match Before Straight from the camera are four well-posed shots with smooth backgrounds and consistent lighting, but the viewing distances are unequal Note how the closeup (bottom right) seems most important After Mug shots in a row or group should be presented uniformly Start with the most closely cropped original (above, left), then scale and crop the others to match Position the results along the eye-level line You’ll need your eye for this, because heads are funny Male and female adult heads are surprisingly similar in size, but head shape, hairstyle, angle and tilt all have a big effect on perceived size, which can mean making small scaling and cropping adjustments so they all look alike  of 10  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix of 10 BAmagazine.com i U X Position Crop closeups at eye level Eye to eye A portrait close enough to convey eye-to-eye contact should be cropped at eye level, which is about two-fifths of the way down the page Note that the closer you zoom, the more intense the connection becomes Up and away Because distant objects appear higher in a visual field, as you zoom out, move her eye level toward the top  of 10  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix of 10 BAmagazine.com i U X Simplify Crop out the dead stuff Who are those strangers? Photos taken in real life almost always contain stuff you don’t want, like the backs of distant strangers in a vacant air terminal The first rule of photo cropping is to get rid of everything that doesn’t contribute to the composition Tight, focused, compelling Well and simply cropped, every square inch tells a story of friendship and intensity  of 10  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix BAmagazine.com of 10 i U X Angle Level those horizons Don’t empty the bay! (Above) It’s easy to overlook a slightly tilted horizon, especially when another angle (the bridge) is thrown in But horizons should be level, and water must be level When a photo has water, think of a soup bowl, and don’t spill it Leveling an image will require cropping all four sides Be bold! While a camera tilt (left) is weak, ambiguous and undesirable, a bold, artistic tilt can energize a composition! It’s especially effective on images that have strong, straight lines like those at right  of 10  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix BAmagazine.com of 10 i U X Zoom Crop to tell a story For the LOVE of the GAME A CENTURY OF BASEBALL Different distances tell different stories Above left is a baseball in the dirt, completely pedestrian; at arm’s length you’d pick it up and throw it But zoom in (right), and the story is different This is an intimate distance You see the leather, the dirt, the seam, the weathering They “fill the screen,” activate your senses You can feel the ball in your hand You hear the crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd; you can touch the history of the game Good photos reveal worlds within worlds Zoom in and see what you find You’ll be surprised JASON HARTFORD  of 10  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix BAmagazine.com of 10 i U X Extreme Crop to fit a space http://www.sewingbasics.net Sewing Basics September 12, 2006 How to Insert an Invisible Zipper Keyword Search: Unlike traditional zippers that have exposed teeth, invisible zippers are designed with coils that run the length of the zipper tape and roll inward, with coils concealed by the zipper tape The result is a no-show opening that, when closed, looks like a continuous seam, without any top-stitching or fabric lapped over to cover zipper Fabric teeth Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular Fabric Width Conversion Chart but quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Texture Sewing Sheer Fabrics and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but quastic, Tips for Sewing Fleece leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Working with Satin Fabrics A photographic banner is a simple way to beautify a Web site or blog But how you fit such an extremely shallow space? By cutting an extreme slice! You’ll be surprised by how much a slice can show Look for one that has some of everything—in this case, needle and thread, buttons, tape measure Here, high color contrasts (red, yellow, white, black) are a bonus; they boldly distinguish each element Elesara and order is fay of alm A card whint not oogum or bont Pretty simple, Fleece Techniques glead and tarm Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling tnt not oogum Fleece for Pets or bont Pretty simple, glead and tarm Texture and flasp net exating end mist of Weaving Workshop it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s Decorative Edges tope, this fluant chasible Silk, shast, lape and behast the thin chack “It has larch to Fleece at Trim say fan.” Why? Elesara and order is fay of alm Attention to Detail Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but Garment Details quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Silk, shast, Creating the Broomstick Look lape and behast the thin chack “It has larch to say fan.” Why? Elesara and order is Easy Machine Hems fay of alm A card whint not oogum or bont Pretty simple, glead and tarm Texture What are Darts? and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Can’t not oogum or bont Pretty  of 10  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix BAmagazine.com of 10 i U X Position Crop to change a meaning “Amber College is a great place for higher education.” AMY LACHEY, STUDENT The original photo has lots of room on the sides, so it’s good for cropping The problem is that her gaze is uninvolved with our message, like maybe she sees a bird on the roof But don’t throw this image away Instead AMBER COLLEGE www.ambercollege.edu Crop boldly! Zoom in and push her radically to the right, off the page, which adds mystery Just like that, our sense is no longer that she’s looking at a bird but thinking about the school You’ll find similarly alterable meanings in many images  of 10  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix BAmagazine.com of 10 i U X Article resources 7a 2a 2b Typefaces For the LOVE of the GAME 7b “Amber College A CENTURY OF BASEBALL is a great place for higher education.” AMY LACHEY, STUDENT Colors Centaur SC & OsF | 69 pt C25 M100 Y100 K20 (a–b) Centaur Bold OsF | a) 132 pt b) 79 pt C0 M55 Y100 K50 ITC Franklin Gothic Book | 31.5 pt ITC Franklin Gothic Demi | 21 pt Franklin Gothic Std No Roman 34.5/18 pt AMBER Century Expanded Roman | 19 pt COLLEGE www.ambercollege.edu JASON HARTFORD 7c 7d 7g 7h 7i 7j Images (a–m) iStockphoto.com | a e f g h i j k l m b c d 7e 7f 7l 7k 7m  of 10  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After ® Pix Trix 10 of 10 Subscribe to Before & After Did you learn from this article? Subscribe, and become a more capable, confident designer for pennies per article To learn more, go to http://www.bamagazine.com/Subscribe BAmagazine.com i U X Before & After magazine Before & After has been sharing its practical approach to graphic design since 1990 Because our modern world has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before & After is dedicated to making graphic design understandable, useful and even fun for everyone To pass along a free copy of this article to John McWade Publisher and creative director Gaye McWade Associate publisher Vincent Pascual Staff designer Dexter Mark Abellera Staff designer others, click here Design advisor Gwen Amos E-mail this article Join our e-list To be notified by e-mail of new articles as they become available, go to http://www.bamagazine.com/email Before & After magazine 323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678 Telephone 916-784-3880 Fax 916-784-3995 E-mail mailbox@bamagazine.com www http://www.bamagazine.com Copyright ©2006 Before & After magazine ISSN 1049-0035 All rights reserved You may pass along a free copy of this article to others by clicking here You may not alter this article, and you may not charge for it You may quote brief sections for review; please credit Before & After magazine, and let us know To link Before & After magazine to your Web site, use this URL: http://www.bamagazine.com For all other permissions, please contact us  10 of 10 | Printing formats  Pix Trix 0633 Before&After BAmagazine.com ® i U X Before & After is made to fit your binder Before & After articles are intended for permanent reference All are titled and numbered For the current table of contents, click here To save time and paper, a paper-saver format of this article, suitable for one- or two-sided printing, is provided on the following pages For presentation format Print: (Specify pages 1–10) For paper-saver format Print: (Specify pages 12–16) Print Format: Landscape Page Size: Fit to Page Save Presentation format or Paper-saver format  Back | Paper-saver format  Cropping basics Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics 0633  A CENTURY OF BASEBALL LOVE of the GAME For the PixTrix1 How to crop photos for function and meaning JASON HARTFORD Start with the picture that has the least cropping room, and make the others match of Before&After | www.bamagazine.com After Mug shots in a row or group should be presented uniformly Start with the most closely cropped original (above, left), then scale and crop the others to match Position the results along the eye-level line You’ll need your eye for this, because heads are funny Male and female adult heads are surprisingly similar in size, but head shape, hairstyle, angle and tilt all have a big effect on perceived size, which can mean making small scaling and cropping adjustments so they all look alike Unify Crop mugs the same size Before Straight from the camera are four well-posed shots with smooth backgrounds and consistent lighting, but the viewing distances are unequal Note how the closeup (bottom right) seems most important 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics  Position Crop closeups at eye level Up and away Because distant objects appear higher in a visual field, as you zoom out, move her eye level toward the top Tight, focused, compelling Well and simply cropped, every square inch tells a story of friendship and intensity Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics 0633  Eye to eye A portrait close enough to convey eye-to-eye contact should be cropped at eye level, which is about two-fifths of the way down the page Note that the closer you zoom, the more intense the connection becomes Simplify Crop out the dead stuff of Before&After | www.bamagazine.com Who are those strangers? Photos taken in real life almost always contain stuff you don’t want, like the backs of distant strangers in a vacant air terminal The first rule of photo cropping is to get rid of everything that doesn’t contribute to the composition 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics  Angle Level those horizons 0633  JASON HARTFORD Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics A CENTURY OF BASEBALL LOVE of the GAME For the Be bold! While a camera tilt (left) is weak, ambiguous and undesirable, a bold, artistic tilt can energize a composition! It’s especially effective on images that have strong, straight lines like those at right Don’t empty the bay! (Above) It’s easy to overlook a slightly tilted horizon, especially when another angle (the bridge) is thrown in But horizons should be level, and water must be level When a photo has water, think of a soup bowl, and don’t spill it Leveling an image will require cropping all four sides Zoom Crop to tell a story of Before&After | www.bamagazine.com Different distances tell different stories Above left is a baseball in the dirt, completely pedestrian; at arm’s length you’d pick it up and throw it But zoom in (right), and the story is different This is an intimate distance You see the leather, the dirt, the seam, the weathering They “fill the screen,” activate your senses You can feel the ball in your hand You hear the crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd; you can touch the history of the game Good photos reveal worlds within worlds Zoom in and see what you find You’ll be surprised 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics  Extreme Crop to fit a space http://www.sewingbasics.net Sewing Basics September 12, 2006 by the zipper tape The result is a no-show opening that, when closed, looks like a with coils that run the length of the zipper tape and roll inward, with coils concealed Unlike traditional zippers that have exposed teeth, invisible zippers are designed How to Insert an Invisible Zipper Fabric leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but quastic, but quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Texture teeth Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular continuous seam, without any top-stitching or fabric lapped over to cover zipper Fabric Width Conversion Chart Keyword Search: Sewing Sheer Fabrics Fleece for Pets Fleece Techniques say fan.” Why? Elesara and order is fay of alm tope, this fluant chasible Silk, shast, lape and behast the thin chack “It has larch to it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s or bont Pretty simple, glead and tarm Texture and flasp net exating end mist of glead and tarm Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling tnt not oogum Elesara and order is fay of alm A card whint not oogum or bont Pretty simple, Tips for Sewing Fleece Weaving Workshop Working with Satin Fabrics Decorative Edges Creating the Broomstick Look Garment Details and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Can’t not oogum or bont Pretty fay of alm A card whint not oogum or bont Pretty simple, glead and tarm Texture lape and behast the thin chack “It has larch to say fan.” Why? Elesara and order is quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Silk, shast, Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but Fleece at Trim Easy Machine Hems Attention to Detail What are Darts? is a great place for “Amber College higher education.” AMY LACHEY, STUDENT AMBER COLLEGE www.ambercollege.edu Crop boldly! Zoom in and push her radically to the right, off the page, which adds mystery Just like that, our sense is no longer that she’s looking at a bird but thinking about the school You’ll find similarly alterable meanings in many images Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics 0633  A photographic banner is a simple way to beautify a Web site or blog But how you fit such an extremely shallow space? By cutting an extreme slice! You’ll be surprised by how much a slice can show Look for one that has some of everything—in this case, needle and thread, buttons, tape measure Here, high color contrasts (red, yellow, white, black) are a bonus; they boldly distinguish each element Position Crop to change a meaning of Before&After | www.bamagazine.com The original photo has lots of room on the sides, so it’s good for cropping The problem is that her gaze is uninvolved with our message, like maybe she sees a bird on the roof But don’t throw this image away Instead 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics  7a For the 7h AMBER 7i www.ambercollege.edu COLLEGE AMY LACHEY, STUDENT higher education.” is a great place for “Amber College Article resources LOVE of the GAME A CENTURY OF BASEBALL JASON HARTFORD 7g 7j 7b Typefaces Centaur SC & OsF | 69 pt c (a–b) Centaur Bold OsF | a) 132 pt b) 79 pt ITC Franklin Gothic Book | 31.5 pt ITC Franklin Gothic Demi | 21 pt Franklin Gothic Std No Roman 34.5/18 pt b Century Expanded Roman | 19 pt Images (a–m) iStockphoto.com | a e f g h i j k l m d C0 M55 Y100 K50 C25 M100 Y100 K20 Colors Before & After magazine Before & After has been sharing its practical approach to graphic design since 1990 Because our modern world has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before & After is dedicated to making graphic design understandable, useful and even fun for everyone John McWade Publisher and creative director Gaye McWade Associate publisher Vincent Pascual Staff designer Dexter Mark Abellera Staff designer Design advisor Gwen Amos Before & After magazine 323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678 Telephone 916-784-3880 Fax 916-784-3995 E-mail mailbox@bamagazine.com www http://www.bamagazine.com Copyright ©2006 Before & After magazine ISSN 1049-0035 All rights reserved You may pass along a free copy of this article to others by clicking here You may not alter this article, and you may not charge for it You may quote brief sections for review; please credit Before & After magazine, and let us know To link Before & After magazine to your Web site, use this URL: http://www.bamagazine.com For all other permissions, please contact us Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics 0633  2a 2b 7d 7l 7c 7f 7m 7e 7k Subscribe to Before & After Did you learn from this article? Subscribe, and become a more capable, confident designer for pennies per article To learn more, go to http://www.bamagazine.com/Subscribe E-mail this article To pass along a free copy of this article to others, click here Join our e-list To be notified by e-mail of new articles as of Before&After | www.bamagazine.com http://www.bamagazine.com/email they become available, go to 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics [...]... paper-saver format Print: (Specify pages 12–16) Print Format: Landscape Page Size: Fit to Page Save Presentation format or Paper-saver format  Back | Paper-saver format  Cropping basics Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics 0633  A CENTURY OF BASEBALL LOVE of the GAME For the PixTrix1 How to crop photos for function and meaning JASON HARTFORD Start with the picture that has the least cropping room, and make...Before&After BAmagazine.com ® i U X Before & After is made to fit your binder Before & After articles are intended for permanent reference All are titled and numbered For the current table of contents, click here To save time and paper, a paper-saver format of this article, suitable for one- or two-sided printing, is provided on the following pages For presentation format Print: (Specify pages 1–10) For. .. level toward the top Tight, focused, compelling Well and simply cropped, every square inch tells a story of friendship and intensity Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics 0633  Eye to eye A portrait close enough to convey eye -to- eye contact should be cropped at eye level, which is about two-fifths of the way down the page Note that the closer you zoom, the more intense the connection becomes Simplify Crop out... sections for review; please credit Before & After magazine, and let us know To link Before & After magazine to your Web site, use this URL: http://www.bamagazine.com For all other permissions, please contact us Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics 0633  2a 1 3 2b 8 9 4 7d 7l 7c 7f 7m 7e 7k Subscribe to Before & After Did you learn from this article? Subscribe, and become a more capable, confident designer for pennies... must be level When a photo has water, think of a soup bowl, and don’t spill it Leveling an image will require cropping all four sides Zoom Crop to tell a story 3 of 5 Before&After | www.bamagazine.com Different distances tell different stories Above left is a baseball in the dirt, completely pedestrian; at arm’s length you’d pick it up and throw it But zoom in (right), and the story is different This... mean making small scaling and cropping adjustments so they all look alike Unify Crop mugs the same size Before Straight from the camera are four well-posed shots with smooth backgrounds and consistent lighting, but the viewing distances are unequal Note how the closeup (bottom right) seems most important 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics  Position Crop closeups at eye level Up and away Because distant... can feel the ball in your hand You hear the crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd; you can touch the history of the game Good photos reveal worlds within worlds Zoom in and see what you find You’ll be surprised 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics  Extreme Crop to fit a space http://www.sewingbasics.net Sewing Basics September 12, 2006 by the zipper tape The result is a no-show opening that, when closed,... M55 Y100 K50 C25 M100 Y100 K20 Colors 9 Before & After magazine Before & After has been sharing its practical approach to graphic design since 1990 Because our modern world has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before & After is dedicated to making graphic design understandable, useful and even fun for everyone John McWade Publisher and creative director Gaye McWade Associate publisher Vincent... of 5 Before&After | www.bamagazine.com Who are those strangers? Photos taken in real life almost always contain stuff you don’t want, like the backs of distant strangers in a vacant air terminal The first rule of photo cropping is to get rid of everything that doesn’t contribute to the composition 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics  Angle Level those horizons 0633  JASON HARTFORD Pix Trix 1: Cropping... boldly distinguish each element Position Crop to change a meaning 4 of 5 Before&After | www.bamagazine.com The original photo has lots of room on the sides, so it’s good for cropping The problem is that her gaze is uninvolved with our message, like maybe she sees a bird on the roof But don’t throw this image away Instead 0633 Pix Trix 1: Cropping basics  7a 1 For the 7h AMBER 7i www.ambercollege.edu