Shopping Trip

IKEA is an interesting place. From the quirky flat pack furniture, sprung wood laminate chairs and lighting components you don't seem to find elsewhere its a eclectic mix of interesting and sometimes innovative design. Other times its WTF? Did you know IKEA has named their cheap stuff after Danish places, while the more expensive and luxurious stuff is named after Swedish places? For example Noresskog, Mattlig and Karlstad are product names and one at least (Karlstad) is a Municipality in Sweden. Fascinating huh?

Nikon D300, Nikkor 35mm f2 @ ISO 200, f2, 1/200 sec

Nikon D300, Nikkor 35mm f2 @ ISO 200, f2, 1/500 sec

Nikon D300, Nikkor 35mm f2 @ ISO 200, f2, 1/125 sec
None of these guys looked happy :-{

Nikon D300, Nikkor 35mm f2 @ ISO 200, f2, 1/125 sec

Composition

Composition is the placement elements in an image, the centre of interest is not normally the centre of the frame. The viewer will then tend to linger over points of interest that his eyes lead to. This is referred to as the "rule of thirds" a principle taught in graphic design and photography and is based on the theory that the eye goes naturally to a point about two thirds up from the bottom of the image. By visually dividing the image into thirds either horizontally or vertically or you achieve asymmetric balance which is naturally pleasing to the eye.

Nikon D300, Nikkor 70-200mm 2.8 @ ISO 200, f2.8, 78mm, 1/640 sec
Some principles of composition are shape and proportion, repetition (pattern), perspective, consistency (among elements), balance (of elements), orientation, space, colour, contrast, lighting and field of view or path of the the viewer's eye when they observe the image. Sometimes you need something in the image that leads you into the picture or gives you a sense of where the photographer was, to his 'perspective'. For example, in the second image from the same place but with a wider frame of view.

Nikon D300, Nikkor 70-200mm 2.8 @ ISO 200, f2.8, 155mm, 1/640 sec

I think this type of framing usually improves an image and parts of the image doesn’t need to be sharply in focus and this fuzziness or bokeh is often a pleasing affect and not a distraction.