This effect, popular in graphic design, is one that you can replicate in abstract photos. In some pieces, positive space and negative space are so balanced that it can be hard to tell them apart. What’s more, while the composition invites our eye to travel around the image – up the path and even into the hills and sky – we never feel distracted by just one part of the composition. In the photo below, both the castle, which is the subject, and the negative space around it hold our visual interest. Avoid this by having visual interest everywhere, both in your positive and negative space, without either overwhelming the other. In achieving the correct balance in a photograph, you don’t want the image to lean to one side, so to speak. Think of it like a scale tipping one way or another depending on the weight on either side. Balance does not necessarily mean symmetry – think: the asymmetrical Starry Night – but it does imply a complete, well-thought composition. Balance is essential to any piece, and you can achieve it by making sure no one part of the photo draws too much attention. Once you’ve determined your subject, it’s time to get artful. If the subject is a landscape feature, use the surrounding area in the composition to create scale. If your subject is a person, use the negative space to give context about place and time. Whatever you choose for your negative space, remember that it should tell the viewer something. Many of us are already great at this type of composition as we commonly snap travel pictures in this style. If you want to take a modern-day picture a-la- Mona Lisa, have the individual you’re photographing sit in front of an idyllic landscape. How should we use positive and negative space in practical application? We can start by determining our subject and deciding where to place it. The stars in the background of Van Gogh’s painting grab your attention, and the spindly vegetation in the foreground almost fades away, like a dark, carved relief. As mentioned above, positive and negative don’t necessarily mean foreground and background. Either way, the painting provides a unique learning moment. The painting’s title cues us into what Van Gogh likely thought. Perhaps your eye goes first to the astral wisps in the background of the painting, while someone else’s eye might focus on the dark bush in the foreground. ![]() For Van Gogh’s Starry Night, the response might be a bit more unclear. For Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, the answer is that the image features a woman sitting for a portrait. In images that don’t have a lot going on, you can quickly determine the subject by asking what the image shows. In certain images, you can easily identify the subject and, therefore, the positive space. What’s more, when you consider these compositional elements of your work, you become a better creator: more informed, thoughtful, and intentional. Knowing how to use negative space in photography is a foolproof recipe for more professional-looking shots. Identify these two types of space, decide on your subject and surrounding material, and create balance and contrast. To take better photos, we should think about positive and negative space and how to create it. That said, it’s just as important to know how to use negative space in photography as it is positive. Perhaps the negative space of the portrait features items that are important to the subject, or maybe this space serves artistic purposes, like providing balance or contrast. In a portrait, negative space can tell us just as much as the facial expression or posture of the person. The image wouldn’t look natural or well-composed. ![]() Just try to capture the Eiffel Tower without the grassy park in front of it or the buildings around it. However, the space outside these focal elements is just as important, even if playing a supporting role. ![]() In a photograph of a cityscape, the positive space is that monument or building of interest. In a portrait, the subject rendered is the positive space. One might argue that positive space is more important because it contains the key material of an image.
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