Author Topic: Square: composing vs cropping (Read 3920 times)

Jack Johnson · « **on:** August 27, 2011, 08:35:51 PM »

I love square images, and I'm still wrapping my brain around them, but I prefer to compose square instead of crop square. For me, they feel like completely different processes.

But that's me. How about you?

If you need some square love for the weekend, http://www.squaremag.org/ gets plenty of good film play.

hookstrapped · « **Reply #1 on:** August 27, 2011, 09:31:08 PM »

Thanks for the link.

I never crop. It started out as a laziness thing in that I got tired of spending time thinking about and futzing around with crops, then it also became something where I recognized the value in terms of improving my compositions.

Suzi Livingstone · « **Reply #2 on:** August 27, 2011, 09:54:25 PM »

Compose square for me, it's my favourite format.

sapata · « **Reply #3 on:** August 27, 2011, 10:22:19 PM »

I rarely crop. If I'm shooting square I think square

...

Diane Peterson · « **Reply #4 on:** August 27, 2011, 11:01:38 PM »

i am with Sapata..only rarely do I crop and thats usually to rid the image of something totally unwanted..my passion is square..I remember when I first figured out some pictures could be square right out of the camera.. I was so delighted..I even have a digital that shoots square..not that I use digital much anymore!! I feels like cheating!

moominsean · « **Reply #5 on:** August 28, 2011, 12:15:39 AM »

I can certainly see the benefit and purpose of cropping, but i never crop anymore. I think it's more common to crop with darkroom printing, and probably with digital. I'd not be surprised if at least 75% of 'famous' photographs are cropped from a larger image. But I like to pay attention to what I'm shooting rather than just aim towards something and then spend two hours endlessly trying different crops to get what I want.

Skorj · « **Reply #6 on:** August 28, 2011, 12:38:47 AM »

Cropping gets rid of my borders. Yech!

sapata · « **Reply #7 on:** August 28, 2011, 01:10:04 AM »

Quote from: Skorj on August 28, 2011, 12:38:47 AM

Cropping gets rid of my borders. Yech!

How could I've forgotten about that?
I wish I could leave borders in all my pictures!

Ed Wenn · « **Reply #8 on:** August 28, 2011, 01:22:06 AM »

I almost never crop my film images (and certainly not from non-square to square), but I find I regularly crop my digi snaps. I spend more time on my film images and take care with them, so there's less reason to crop. If I want square I use a square shooter and so forth. If I was a pro or a commercial photographer I'm sure I'd be cropping my images left, right and centre as different forces come into play. As an amateur though there's rarely a reason to crop...to the point where I honestly don't even dwell on the fact that it's an option which is available to me.

Jack Johnson · « **Reply #9 on:** August 28, 2011, 01:23:29 AM »

Quote from: sapata on August 28, 2011, 01:10:04 AM

I wish I could leave borders in all my pictures!

I hear that!

Jack Johnson · « **Reply #10 on:** August 28, 2011, 01:39:32 AM »

Quote from: ed.wenn on August 28, 2011, 01:22:06 AM

If I was a pro or a commercial photographer I'm sure I'd be cropping my images left, right and centre as different forces come into play.

Somewhere online I saw an example of a pro's crop, some random fashion shoot that looks like it was shot on his couch, and when I saw the original I thought, "I would burn that neg out of embarrassment." Then, when you see the crop, you're like, yep, that's a full-page glossy ad, right there, no retouch necessary, crap coffee table and funky curtains gone, and the lighting is brilliant.

So, as an amateur it made me think, OK, how many decent pictures am I passing up because I wouldn't bother to consider the crop? But I'm totally right there on the other side of the fence, all of my most proud pictures (regardless of format) are ones where they would not be improved by cropping, and when I look at pictures I admire, I love seeing the borders, vignetting, and all the rest of those tiny aspects that let you peek at the effort that went into the image and, to me, help bring that effort to life, that remind us that as much as there was the scene there was an observer who was skilled and fortunate enough to capture it.

Miles · « **Reply #11 on:** August 28, 2011, 01:46:32 AM »

I'm all for square straight out of the camera, but most 35mm isn't square so I'll crop that sometimes, I'm not proud, I'm a tart.

Nothing beats a decent composed square.

Especially if taken with a TLR

Abdul Hye · « **Reply #12 on:** August 28, 2011, 02:00:42 AM »

I shoot to print, using an enlarger. I will lose around 5% of the image. After setting the easel and the enlarger head sometimes during focusing the focused image will be smaller than area of the frame so I will start with the image falling on an area larger than frame. Otherwise I’ll be there all day adjusting the head. When I shoot on medium format I give it a little wiggle room.

hookstrapped · « **Reply #13 on:** August 28, 2011, 02:09:43 AM »

Quote from: Jack Johnson on August 28, 2011, 01:39:32 AM

Quote from: ed.wenn on August 28, 2011, 01:22:06 AM
If I was a pro or a commercial photographer I'm sure I'd be cropping my images left, right and centre as different forces come into play.

Somewhere online I saw an example of a pro's crop, some random fashion shoot that looks like it was shot on his couch, and when I saw the original I thought, "I would burn that neg out of embarrassment." Then, when you see the crop, you're like, yep, that's a full-page glossy ad, right there, no retouch necessary, crap coffee table and funky curtains gone, and the lighting is brilliant.

So, as an amateur it made me think, OK, how many decent pictures am I passing up because I wouldn't bother to consider the crop? But I'm totally right there on the other side of the fence, all of my most proud pictures (regardless of format) are ones where they would not be improved by cropping, and when I look at pictures I admire, I love seeing the borders, vignetting, and all the rest of those tiny aspects that let you peek at the effort that went into the image and, to me, help bring that effort to life, that remind us that as much as there was the scene there was an observer who was skilled and fortunate enough to capture it.

I know what you mean. But even though there might be a good slick image lurking in an uncropped problematic pic, I think the product loses something in the process, like you're trading in something in the bargain. Maybe I'm just spouting bullshit, but cropping feels like cheating, I (like Ed) might crop a digital image but that's because I don't really care to begin with. It's manipulating in a way that's no different from photoshopping out distracting little children or bags of trash.

Late Developer · « **Reply #14 on:** August 28, 2011, 07:15:40 AM »

Square is my favourite aspect ratio right now.

Been giving this some thought and I tend to spend almost as much time looking around the edges of the shot (especially if I have time - e.g. a landscape) so that I don't leave distractions to the main subject matter. I especially don't like half of something hanging out of the frame and I'll usually get closer to eliminate it or go a bit further back if I want it in the shot.

Wherever possible, I try to get it as "right" as possible in-camera so I don't need to crop or don't have to crop much.

Phil Bebbington · « **Reply #15 on:** August 28, 2011, 09:41:18 AM »

The move to MF and square a few years ago slowed the whole process down for me and along with that came greater attention to detail. I spend more time on the shot and as a result, I don't consider cropping. On the odd occasion I have missed something and can see that it might benefit from a crop. However, the changing of the frame into something that I hadn't seen at the time of shooting really unsettles me.

LT · « **Reply #16 on:** August 28, 2011, 10:07:24 AM »

Quote from: Jack Johnson on August 28, 2011, 01:39:32 AM

how many decent pictures am I passing up because I wouldn't bother to consider the crop?

That's exactly where I am at. If a picture warrants a crop, I crop it, if not, I don't.

In my mind, the only drawback with cropping, is needing to enlarge more, which will degrade tonal quality and increase grain slightly more than if I were printing at full frame at the same size.

I don't spend hours looking for new pictures in pictures though - if a picture is bad, I don't think any crop is going to really help it. It has to be a virtually immediate reaction to the neg for me.

sapata · « **Reply #17 on:** August 28, 2011, 11:12:25 AM »

Quote from: Jack Johnson on August 28, 2011, 01:39:32 AM

I love seeing the borders, vignetting, and all the rest of those tiny aspects that let you peek at the effort that went into the image and, to me, help bring that effort to life, that remind us that as much as there was the scene there was an observer who was skilled and fortunate enough to capture it.

Totally!!
It's almost like a "DNA" of a picture... it's unique to that image. It's like when people get rid off the polaroid borders, in my opinion those frames has become part of the picture and when people crop somehow does'nt look instant film anymore.

Ed Wenn · « **Reply #18 on:** August 28, 2011, 02:20:36 PM »

Quote from: hookstrapped on August 28, 2011, 02:09:43 AM

It's manipulating in a way that's no different from photoshopping out distracting little children or bags of trash.

Hah! If I Photoshopped out the distracting little children in my photos, 99% of the time there would be nothing left in the frame.

Francois · « **Reply #19 on:** August 28, 2011, 05:38:53 PM »

I used to be a big cropper... but now I'm just too lazy to do it

Actually, I usually compose my shots very close to the edges of the frame. Removing anything usually doesn't work very well.

When I enlarge 35mm in the darkroom, I usually end up cropping so the image fits my easels. One has only two adjustable blades and the other is fixed ratio. But for 120, I let the image as it is with uneven borders... I'll have to fix that someday.