Improve Your Artistic Eye

Two professional photographers offer advice on how to expand your sense of style

By David Willis

Published June 1, 2007
Updated June 20, 2016

Design in photography is basically a combination of the functional with the aesthetic. What does that mean? It means that it’s hard to define. The slightest variation in light, tone, colors, patterns, shapes, focus, motion, shading or viewpoint can lead to a drastic difference in the overall feel of a photograph. By manipulation of shutter speed, aperture and lens choice—the functional aspects of a camera—you can vary these elements of design in endless ways.

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