In the scorching heat of summer, everyone prefers to stay cool wherever they can. Even browsing their mobile phones, they are willing to look at cool and refreshing pictures. Therefore, a group of blue skies and white clouds that Xiaoyue posted recently, many of my friends like it very much.
The picture is a bit "minimalist" and the color tone is a bit "fresh". Some friends said - the scenery in is so beautiful, it is rare to see such a clean and messy environment around me, and there is no chance to take this kind of " minimalist film".
In fact, the environment in which this group of pictures was taken is not as beautiful as everyone thinks. On the contrary, most of the scenes are just the "roofs of old houses" in the old community for decades.
▼Real shooting scene｜Old community, old house, messy
After seeing the real shooting environment, some friends may ask - can such an ordinary environment as produce a "minimalist style"? It all looked like a mess.
In fact, no matter how unsatisfactory the environment is, as long as we pay more attention and observe what is in front of us, we can always find some bright spots in the ordinary, and then add our own ideas. Even in the same environment, we can look for changing details and take more photos. picture.
Today, Xiaoyue will take this set of "old house roof" pictures as an example to chat with her friends - How to take "minimalist" pictures with mobile phones in ordinary living environments?
First of all, if you want to take a minimalist picture, Xiaoyue summarized 4 keywords -: fewer elements, more white space; less color, more contrast.
1. Fewer elements, more white space｜Learn to "subtract"
"Minimalist picture" is simply understood as "simple but not simple" , using the fewest elements to express rich content or heart. Although the picture of
is simple, it does not have any redundant elements. Even if there is only "one subject" and a large background, people who see it can feel the content of the picture. Even large-scale scenes are left blank to give everyone more room for imagination. When facing the same picture, viewers with different moods can get different feelings.
Then the question arises - how does determine which elements in the environment are redundant? Which ones should be kept and which ones should be removed to ultimately create the so-called "minimalist picture" with "content"?
▼ Here is a little trick - do "subtraction"
First of all, you have to know exactly what you want to shoot, or at least determine what the "subject" is.
Then, in the viewfinder you want to shoot, exclude elements one by one. As long as you feel that removing this element does not affect the scene you want to shoot, or has no impact on the "subject", then remove it decisively until you feel " When "indispensable", it is the element that should be retained in the final picture.
▼ For example: In the shooting environment in the picture below, if you want to shoot in a "minimalist style", how can you do the subtraction?
1－What do you want to take a photo of? First look for the bright spots
Facing this environment, the whole environment is messy, but when I look up, I see the blue roof of the old house opposite and two small red and blue chimneys. The color and shape are beautiful, and the contrast with the white clouds in the sky is obvious, a simple and clean picture , takes "blue sky, white clouds and blue roof" (see the picture below)
2 - How to do subtraction? After removing the redundant elements
and determining the "main screen", we should do "subtraction". It was found that in the overall environment, except for the main body of the picture "blue and red chimneys", only the blue sky and white clouds are needed as the background, and a small part of the blue roofs are used as the foreground. Other pictures (including buildings, ground, trees, etc.) are dispensable. . So we decisively removed it, which also directly solved the problem of "cluttered environment" (see the picture below)
▼ Finally, we have the following set of "minimalist" pictures of Blue Roof
. It should be noted that while "reduces redundant elements in the picture", we must also remember "More white space" is another characteristic of minimalism. Therefore, when composing a picture, the "subject" usually does not occupy a large proportion and leaves a large blank background (or foreground). Such a composition will also leave more room for the viewer's imagination.
2. Less color, more contrast｜Enhancing the picture level
Learning the first step of "subtraction" does not mean that you can take beautiful "minimalist" pictures. If you want to be "simple but not simple", you must also use other methods to enrich the "beauty" of the picture, and making good use of colors and various contrasts is one of the methods.
1 - Pay attention to "less color"
First of all, you must know that "color" is also an "element", so in a "minimalist" picture, do not have too many colors, usually two or three kinds are enough.
▼ For example: The following two pictures were taken from the same angle. Which one do you think is closer to the "minimalist style"?
2 - Clever use of "multi-contrast"｜Enrich picture levels
There are many "contrasts" in photography. In addition to color contrast, there are also light and dark contrast, virtual and real contrast, dynamic and static contrast.
When we shoot "minimalist images", try to use "contrast images" more often, which can make the image look more three-dimensional and layered while "fewer elements", which means enhancing the beauty of the image.
For example: The environment in the picture below is shot from the same angle. How will the picture change after Xiaoyue adds three "contrasts"?
▼ The first picture: no "contrast" picture
Although the picture below is very "simple", there is basically no "contrast" picture - the color is similar (the blue sky and the blue roof are the same color); the lightness and darkness are similar (almost no contrast) (Obvious contrast); there is no "contrast between movement and stillness", it is just a still picture.
▲ Although this photo can be said to be "minimalist", it always makes people feel that the picture has no content. Apart from brighter colors, it has no memorable points. What should I do?
▼ Method 1: Add light and dark contrast | Enhance the three-dimensional sense
First, add a small "light and dark contrast" picture - when the sun position shifts slightly, a "shadow" appears on the side of the chimney, although it is very small. The details have changed, but the position of the chimney is more prominent and three-dimensional than in the first picture.
▼ Method 2: Add "Motion and Static Contrast"｜The picture is more dynamic
"Motion and Static Contrast" means adding changeable elements (such as flying birds) to the "motionless scenery" in the picture. When taking this photo, it happened to be Two pigeons landed on the roof, so I took a photo immediately. Does the picture immediately come to life?
▼ Method 3: Add “color”｜The picture will be more vivid
In the same shooting environment, using “strong contrasting colors” will make the picture look more vivid than “the same color”. For example, in this "blue" picture, a large white cloud floats across. At this time, the contrasting colors of blue and white make the picture brighten up immediately.
The above three "contrast elements" may not be very obvious in a few examples, and everyone's aesthetics and expression are also different. I only share Xiaoyue's personal shooting experience with everyone.
Although this article mainly talks about the skills of "taking minimalist pictures with mobile phones", careful friends will find that Xiaoyue took nearly ten shots of the same scene by changing different shooting backgrounds and adding various "contrast elements". Multiple different pictures, is actually a good way to exercise our "photographic observation" - see how many pictures you can take in the same scene. If you have a chance, you can try .
Pictures and texts｜Original by Yue Xiaoyue｜This article is supervised by the rights protection platform. Please do not reprint without permission.
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