5 Exciting Ways to Improve Your Composition in 2024 

Thanks for the lesson in composition. I am a disabled veteran and and trying to get into watercolor. It is very tricky. There are so many things to consider. I mostly just make messes right now. One day I will make something beautiful. but for now, thanks for being here. You are helping in many ways.

When it comes to composition, my favorite has to be Ian Roberts. The man can paint an empty dirt road and make it interesting. His lessons have been invaluable and his books are great.

Hi Steve, that was a great illustration of the elements and principals of design. I grew up in a family of professional photographers and went into the family business for a few years, then went on to interior design, which is more properly interior architecture. Oddly enough, we were taught a smattering of watercolor painting to use for quick design sketches and I have been fascinated (and frustrated) by this great medium ever since, and it wasn't until I found your channel a few years ago that I really found out how to let this wonderful medium do most of the work for me. Just one little note I thought interesting - in the photo of the women in front of the arched building you consistently referred to the shape of their grouping as a pyramid, while I see very clearly that they form an arch shape, which perfectly echoes the shape of the arches in the building :D Thankyou for being such a generous teacher!!!

Love that you still teach real art techniques. There is more to art than a few random brush strokes and call it a flower on a page. Not there is not enjoyment with a painting process of that but real understanding of the whole takes time and a feeling of depth that requires time that gives real satisfaction of knowledge aquired.

I really appreciate your sage comments on composition and bringing Vivian Maier to our attention. I do want to tune up my composition sophistication. I spend time studying many masters, but one that may be a surprise is Paul Klee. Everything is so considered, yet so spontaneous seeming. He was an excellent musician, and the rhythms in his art are amazing. Lastly, he was daring with energy of design and contrast, but also incorporated wit and tenderness in his art.

We are aware of her work, Steve, and yes, its an incredible story of an excellent photographer!

so many amazing tips, thank you for sharing with us all ☺☺☺

Thomas Schaller's watercolours. Ian Roberts. John MacDonald. All write about composition in helpful ways. John Singer Sargent's watercolours, especially of gardens, but also of Venice.

This, in my opinion, is the most important, useful videos yet. Too many "artists" neglect composition then wonder why their pictures don't really work.

And to think I thought composition was all about the golden ratio. Oh, have you opened my eyes!

You _know_ this is a subject that really "draws" me in! There is SO much to discuss on this topic and you hit the primary points right on target. Love this video and will have to reflect back to it again as a reminder. When I was teaching, I always taught that composition is how we read the story of a piece and how it leads the viewer into a specific area of the piece without them knowing it. I've always been in awe of Andrew Wyeth and John Singer Sargent's abilities in composing their work to make it look so effortless. Thank you for sharing this discussion - super important and I don't think it is spoken about enough. Well done, my friend! Happy new year! ~ Mark

The fact that the first photo is, at its core, just a picture of a mirror on a wall (even if we're drawn to the contents of the mirror itself) is its best example of juxtaposition IMO.

Wow! I recently watched Finding Vivian Maier. She was great at composition. Thanks for the lesson and for sharing her story.

A fascinating story, saw a documentary about her a few years ago.

M.C. Echer is insane when it comes to composition in my opinion.

I have been thinking of looking at photography, you have given me the right encouragement, to find the right balance for my painting, and to study photographs . Thankyou

20:26. I was waiting for you to pick up on the chalk line arcs on that wall. Normally such a thing would be ugly, out of place and distracting but not in this photo. Also at 22:16 the wall area outside the mirror is the largest negative space in the photo and it flows well with the negative space of the reflected wall within the mirror

hi Steve, great analysis! Would you consider doing this type of analysis on some famous paintings? Would love to know what makes a great painting.

There is juxtaposition of the lady with the balloons having a neutral face but holding celebratory balloons, the thrust of the circular mirror reflection moving away from us but the light and the beam above moving toward us, the connection of the women "together" (though they are far apart) against the solidity, hardness, and singularity of the building in the background, negative space of the wall around the circular mirror where it disappears like it's part of the page instead of part of the photo, and juxtaposition of the people outside the bar, two of which are planted still and the other two in the midst of traveling out of the scene. I was mesmerized by how the photos didn't seem to be a typical photo of "something or someone", yet each one told endless stories for us to imagine about what is going on in the image. I love it. Thanks so much for the lesson, and for introducing me to Vivian!

Thank you for this. Learnt a lot.

Thanks for introducing me to Vivian Maier, I hadn’t heard of her. In addition to the clever composition of her photos, there appears to be powerful and intriguing stories behind her subjects. I felt I wanted to know more about them and their lives. You get tiny glimpses through her photos. She was certainly a very talented lady. I wonder why she didn’t reveal her art?

Thanks Steve. Happy New Year!

"Spice cabinet of composition" what a great analogy!

Such a helpful video! Thank you.

This is a really helpful video. I have already put the Maier book on hold at my local library. I esp love the way she uses negative space - the photo next to the one of the two couples drew me in with the way that negative space is used. Thanks again for a unique video.

I am new to the world of art and have just started my journey with watercolour. I have two Salvador Dali prints hanging in my dining room. His work has always intrigued me. As I watched this video I am sitting opposite these images and there is so much use of each element in his work!! I think I have learnt to understand and appreciate his work so much more now! Thank you for your video!

This was a great class! Street photography isn't my favorite style, but I appreciated you pointing out what's cool and remarkable in her work - and translating that to watercolor as well. Many thanks

Thank you for your wonderful videos Steve. In the photo of the 4 people at 11ish mins... Did you notice one element of connection could be between the 3 people and the photographer herself 😊

Amazing collection of work. Composition is the heart of the paint. Thanks for the discovery of this artist and for inviting us to look closer and learn.

This is such a helpful video, thank you!

Thank you for this little course in composition, in many books the topic is always treated too briefly for me, and you explained it in much more detail.🙂

This is so inspiring, it motivates me to understand all this one day.. for mow, I am having a hard time seeing it all, let alone apply it. I am four years into my watercolour journey and am eager to learn, thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and knowledge

This is very helpful, thank you. I find that my compositional elements are almost always broadcast through color, but the figures and elements themselves, I tend to have a difficult time with floating in space. I mean, I do put them in an environment, but they don't connect the way I want them to. Keeping thus lesson in mind will go a long way to helping that methinks, so again thank you.

Very enlightening. Thank you for the instruction and the intro to Vivian Maier whom I didn't know about till now.

Great lesson! I Hope to see you talk about this while painting…😉.

Composition, an essential tool for pictorial language. As you mentioned: Andrew Wyeth, one of my favorites, but also the masters of the Renaissance such as Caravaggio who rigorously used light and shadow in the composition of his works. We mention that figurative works but even with abstraction: the elements of the composition that you have shared in your video, are important to know to share an effective visual message. Thank you and happy new year 2024.😊🎉

Thanks for the video. Composition is important for artists, period.

Thank you. Amazing photographs. I used to have books of Robert Doisneau

In my view, Vermeer is tops in composition, followed by Caravaggio, John Singer Sargent, Artemisia Gentileschi, and Georgia O'Keeffe! Thanks for sharing your discovery of Vivian Maier. I had not known about her until now!

Excellent instruction and insight! Thank you so much!

Thanks for offering this take on the topic. I could mention many artists, but the art that comes most to mind when thinking about composition is classic Japanese painting. I am often struck in particular by its dynamic flow and direction.

Adds to my SECTIONALIZM style, TNX

Now I am "connected"

Excellent lesson and the Napoleon Dynamite clip to emphasis flow,direction, and thrust was hilarious!

Thank you Steve, great lesson. I have a book, "W. Eugene Smith: Let Truth be the Prejudice". He was a Life Magazine photographer whose job was to tell a story through captivating images. I see a lot of these composition examples in his work. I also love black & white photography, I find it easier to identify values, patterns, etc.

Ansel Adams photographs might also be something to take a closer look at.

Enjoyed this. Will watch it again. Some were more pleasing to my eye than others.

One of my favorite artists of all time is Michael Whelan. For those who don't recognize the name, he is probably best known for science fiction/fantasy cover art, and he is a master at it. One of my friends has a story of how, at a convention, he made the comment about how he learned that his covers sometimes sold the books better than the blurb on the back. Thinking he was full of it, she and her other half went home and started pulling out books that they could remember being most influenced by the cover art, and to her surprise, a vast majority of them were in fact his work. And yet, despite how that comment might make him sound, he was actually a pretty laid back individual. For me, it was his work, specifically his cover art for Anne McCaffrey's "The White Dragon", that made me start really looking at art as more than just "something pretty to look at". I can remember there being a cutout standee promoting the release of the book in Waldenbooks, walking past it, stopping, and turning back to look at it closer. I was mesmerized by it. A little while later, I found one of his art books.. Wonderworks? or some similar title, in the base library, and all but devoured it, checking it out over and over, and, though I cringe to admit it these days, even making copies of some of my favorite pieces with the library copy machine (this was the early '80s). And yes, I was at the same convention the friend I mentioned above was at, and yes, I met him... and I was good, I kept a firm lid on my giddy inner fan-girl... with him at least. His wife was not so lucky, I'm afraid. And yes, I did get a signed poster print of the painting that started the whole roller coaster ride. It is currently hanging to the side of my desk as an inspiration. While you were talking, I kept glancing up at it, and found myself seeing many of the elements you spoke about. Because it was painted as cover art, and a wrap around piece at that, I think one of the strongest things is the, I guess it would fall under juxtaposition of the detail on the "front" side, and the generalities on the "back" side. Also the use of negative space for where the text pieces would go, that still manages to look good as a stand alone painting. There are probably more examples, but I've already done my usual novella-length post.

I love studying photographers and artists in other mediums!!

The quirky edits in between are giving me a distinct THRUST to you video Steve 😊.

Thank you for this video… this precious class😊

happy new year, missed seeing you

Reese looks de-composed. Thanks for throwing in my favorite Ironman Christmas movie.. Now I have to go get the book, I wanna see more of her pictures.

I’ve learned a ton from Edgar Payne’s landscape compositions 😊

I had not heard of Vivian Meier before now. This will definitely help with the composition of my paintings. My favorite artists that display great composition in their paintings are Norman Rockwell and Robert Bateman and Rien Poortvliet.

Interesting! I need to pull out my Wyeth books and design/ composition books that have been languishing on my shelf. Thank you so much!

Such wonderful photography. As we say “ some just have that eye” but it most certainly can be learned -how to pull someone into the story. It is always on my mind with whatever medium that I use. There are so many generous photographers that love to work with artists that all one has to do is just ask. I love taking different elements and creating a story and have been working on that first in wc because it is my fastest and “home medium” because I can manipulate it quickly but all good stuff Steve and very impressive photography for a certainty. Thank you again as we look forward to this year’s events and plans. 😊

Can you look at some of paintings and go through them using the same 5 elements? I really enjoyed this video, but paintings are probably a bit more simple and would demonstrate to artists how many of those elements would need to go into a sketch, or a painting. I already had notes that I didn't understand from someone else, some of which you have clarified for me: There are 7 elements of design: Shape, Size, Line, Direction, Texture, Colour and Value. There are 7 principles of design: Contrast, Harmony, Balance, Repetition, Dominance, Gradation and Unity. The most important is dominance: There should be a dominant Shape, Size, Line, Direction, Texture, Colour and Value. Do we have to use all of them, or just a one or two?

Thank you for this analysis and explanation about composition! This is the sort of talk I’d like to give to my more advanced art students- but since we only meet once a week and the class is mixed ages, I can’t sacrifice the time for it. Now though I can send this video to my experienced high school kids and give them the opportunity to start learning about composition. I really appreciate that you stuck to the same four images and merged some of the typical terms into general ideas. I also super appreciate that you said that the best way to really learn good composition is just to look at a lot of examples- after decades of formal study & reading many books on the topic, that’s what I had determined also!

I am glad you are discussing this. Good topic from a great teacher. Thanks so much.

I really enjoyed your composition lesson and the intro to Virginia Maier. Composition helps me to understand why I am fascinated with a picture. My favorite artist is Norman Rockwell. I look forward to studying composition in his illustrations.

Thank you Steve, i have been working on my composition and your video add greatly to my efforts. Thank you 😊

This is fantastic! I love learning about composition in exactly this way -- by studying the works of masters and analyzing their "design." (Just today, in response to your email, I had suggested some videos on composition... and then tonight I found this new video that you had posted yesterday! 😆)

Happy New Year! Thank you for all the wonderful instructions and for starting the year off with this great topic. There are so many things to consider when making art. I often am drawn to photographers and artists without completely understanding why. I am beginning to learn . Many thanks to you!

I did see that fantastic documentary a while ago about Vivian Maier. Such a fascinating story! Thanks for this much needed info to help with my composition dilemmas. I'm going to look through my own art and see if any or all of these principles apply and how I could have done better.

I am no expert but, in my opinion, Maxfield Parrish was a master of composition. Going back farther back in time, another favorite is Johannes Vermeer. Thank you for a very helpful breakdown of the important concepts to develop a good composition. It is something I really struggle with. Glad you had a nice holiday break and that you are back with us to get 2024 off to a good start :)

Composition😵‍💫 My brain explodes. Also, I can’t help wondering if her photographs, while I agree are fabulous, were actually taken intuitively. Does an artist’s intuition play any role? Thank you Steve.😊

I have a "guilty confession". I decided that I'd take up photography as a way to improve the composition in painting. In reality, it just meant I spend a lot more time taking photos than painting. Has it helped? Maybe?

I'd actually say that Reese looks pretty "decomposed"...since all that is left of him is his skull!

Hi Steve, another great video, thanks for covering such an important “piece of the pie.” OFF TOPIC: I need an easel, I see you have what looks like a tabletop easel, dark wood with chunky black knobs on the side. I noticed it in the Strathmore videos that you posted recently. Can you tell me what easel that is, or one you might recommend? My neck is killing me from looking down so much while painting.

I thought at first you said "straight photographer…" and thought "what on Earth could her sexuality possibly have to do with photography? lol. I blame my misshearing on Covid.

Artist Vermeer shows this in his paintings.

Jay Meisel

I wish there were a different, descriptive, word or words to replace Negative Space.

Yessir 🥸

2nd! 👋🏼 😊

Ansel Adams