Using the viewfinder – framing up

Experienced photographers often make a rough ‘frame’ shape with their hands to exclude surroundings when first looking and deciding how a scene will photograph.

Similarly, you can carry a slide mount, or a cardboard cut-out, to look through and practice ways of framing up your subject. When you come to buying a camera, it is most important to choose one which has a viewfinding system you find clear and ‘comfortable’ to use, especially if you wear glasses. After all, the viewfinder is a kind of magic drawing pad on which the world moves about as you point the camera – including or cropping out something here; causing an item to appear in front of, or alongside, another item there. Digital cameras have the added advantage of often allowing you to frame your pictures on the camera’s inbuilt LCD screen as well as through the viewfinder.