Lets discuss golden ratio

[Jameel Hyder]

I think it's great to have a discussion like this Jameel. It makes us all think more about compositions, and that's a huge positive.

Maybe I have seen different examples, the ones I have seen the Spiral is a path that leads the eye from start to finish.

As I mentioned to Ben, the Spiral isn't just there to be pretty, the purpose of the spiral is to be a path that the eye follows from the starting point. There is supposed to be a minor element or elements along that spiral path to pull the eye to the end point.

It's like we often talk in our Landscape photos about leading lines. We do want our eyes to start somewhere in a photo, usually in the foreground and then follow the leading line(s) to the background. Pretty simple. With the Golden Ratio, those leading lines are now supposed to follow that spiral path.

Taking the discussion off the submissions in the recipe. The purpose here is not to beat a dead horse but to further the discussion and hopefully enhance our collective understanding. For this purpose I've included a couple of examples which are often quoted in this context. Also the spiral is only one way to represent this, others are rectangles, diagonals etc. The spiral is simply a geometric representation of the Fibonacci series.

The rectangular representation of the golden ratio

Here are two examples by renowned photographers of the use of golden ratio as a compositional tool. The spiral isn't used here to lead the eye (atleast I don't see it that way).

Ansel Adams

Henri Cartier-Bresson

Here is another example where the spiral is in fact used to lead the eye.

This example overlays a grid to show the positioning of the subject still using the same concept.

Hope these examples are helpful in furthering the discussion.

 

[Ben Egbert]

Thanks for showing these Jameel.

The Ansel Adams image is hard to see the connection.

In the Henri Cartier-Bresson image I see the camera is sort of filling up the end of the spiral.

The food image is pretty clear and the sort of image that seems like a good source for this type of composition.

I don't get the last one at all.

 

[JimFox]

Thanks Jameel, it's good to discuss this some more.

With the exception of the grid in #4, if you look at the 3 examples you listed, all 3 have elements along the spiral.

In #1, it's the reflection of the peaks in the water that pull the eye through.

In #2, it's the curved body of Henri relaxing in the chair.

In #3, as you mentiond the spiral is leading the eye by the placement of the silverware and the small bowls of sauces.

I think trying to convert the Spiral to a grid doesn't work. in #4 I see the smaller grids in it which could be used to place a starting point, but it looks to me to just be the Rule of Thirds, that's how I would have composed that same image and I would have done it based on the Rule of Thirds.

I stand by my observation that the Spiral is an essential part of the Golden Ratio. If the spiral is not used, then the person is not using the Golden Ratio, they are just using the Rule of Thirds.

 

[JimFox]

Thanks for showing these Jameel.

The Ansel Adams image is hard to see the connection.

In the Henri Cartier-Bresson image I see the camera is sort of filling up the end of the spiral.

The food image is pretty clear and the sort of image that seems like a good source for this type of composition.

I don't get the last one at all.

Ben, in the Henri photo, the camera is the start of the spiral.

Maybe you are looking at this backwards? From what I have seen, you "start" at the very tightest part of the spiral first, and then your eye "spiral's out to the rest of the photo. The Spiral leads out from the from the focal point of the photo, the part that first grabs your eye. The Spiral doesn't "lead in" if you will, it "leads out". I hope that didn't sound too confusing.