Photographic Composition

All the technical know-how, fancy lenses, and megapixels can't make a good picture without something more essential–composition. This 5-week class is designed for anyone who struggles to understand the basics of designing their frame in order to achieve the strongest possible expression. How many times have you taken a shot of a beautiful subject, only to feel flat when seeing the image printed? What are the mysteries that make one image astonishing, and another dull and lifeless?

This class will start with many of the basic compositional "rules": the rule of thirds, leading lines, vantage point, simplification/reduction, and negative space. The class will then proceed to learn when and why it is a good idea to break those rules. With some help from Bill Brandt, we'll introduce abstraction. With the help of Robert Frank, we'll learn potent, surgical framing. With a look at Lartique, we'll see the benefits of being more childlike with the camera. In short, we'll be taking risks.

Assignments and critiques will be an essential part of the learning process as you gain greater and greater control over the content and message of your images. As Alain de Botton writes, "Once I began to to consider everything as being of potential interest, objects released their latent layers of value."

5-week Class

Tuesdays, 10 am - 1 pm

November 15 – December 13

• $350

• Digital camera of any kind
• Thumb drive (Minimum 4GB) or 2.5" Hard Drive
• Portfolio of 5 prints for initial discussion

Rick Wright practices and teaches photography as a malleable and sculptural medium. Though initially trained as a painter at Princeton and Columbia Universities (BA and MFA), he later studied at ICP in NY with John Loengard, Susan Meiselas, Danny Lyon, and Nan Goldin.

Rick shows his work locally and nationally. He is collected in several permanent collections, most recently added to the University of Pennsylvania's Collection. Wright has kept a studio in Philadelphia for the past 7 years and teaches photography at various venues including: Fleisher Art Memorial, Project Basho, Panasonic's Digital Photo Academy, as well as his own online classes and seminars.