Like most parents my photos app is full of photos of my young son. Thousands of images representing moments in his young life, all trying to capture the fleeting moments of his childhood. While I love a posed image where he’s smiling and looking directly at my camera, though in full transparency I use my phone to capture more photos these days instead pulling out my DSLR camera, my favorite photos of him are the upstaged images, capturing moments that show his childlike awe and wonder at the world around him.
The original image was taken on an unseasonably warm autumnal day when we still lived in Wales as my son and I traipsed around Bute Park in Cardiff making the most of the weather. Due the weather some of the flowers in the park were still lingering, and my son at this age was literally always eager to stop and smell the flowers. While the I love the original image, especially the placement of his feet as he slowed from his typical pace of running to smell these flowers, I find by cropping the image to zoom in on him as well as by off centering him the image better highlights and exhibits his childlike wonder as he takes in the flower. To help obtain this sense of childlike awe I cropped the photo using the rule of thirds to ensure his eyes were the focal point the viewer would be drawn to. By cropping the photo it also elevates little details that may be missed in the original image, such as his dirty fingers from playing in the dirt moments before this image was captured. Cropping the image shows the magic of childhood in a sense, where the ordinary things adults often pass by become extraordinary in the fresh perspective of a child.
Additionally, I adjusted the color and brightness settings to accentuate my son and the flower instead of the green in the background.
Hi Caitlin! I love your choice of photo. What a sweet subject! Your crop does an excellent job reframing this photo. The unedited photo is lovely, we get a sense that your son was running around, a good glimpse of the garden, and his pose is adorable. However, the crop really draws our attention to the moment he’s having with the flowers. We can more clearly see his questioning expression and we can more clearly see the flowers he’s looking at (they kind of get lost in the broadness of the original photo). Your edits with the color and brightness bring out the blues and greens in the pavers as well, creating more visual harmony. I’d be curious to see what this photo would look like in different aspect ratios, as the subject feels pressed up against the side of the frame, but overall it is a great photo. I hope you have it printed out and framed!
Hi Caitlin. This photo is darling! Your son is so so cute! The cropped image really centers the focus of the image. The cropped image drew my attention to his sweet facial expressions and the flower. Another way the image could have been cropped is on just his hand for a completely different meaning. One suggestion I have is to pull back the cropping a bit to include a bit more of a border between the focus and the edge of the image.
Hi Caitlin,
This photo is so cute and full of life! I love how the crop focuses on your son’s attention on the flower, making the moment feel even more special. It really changes the meaning from the original by drawing attention to a child’s curiosity.
I can totally relate—my photo gallery is also filled with thousands of pictures of my daughter! Capturing these little moments is so special. I also agree with Grace’s suggestion to focus on the little hand and the flower. It would highlight how carefully those tiny fingers are holding the flower, making the moment feel even more tender and precious. Maybe pulling back the crop just a little could also help add more balance.
Overall, such a lovely choice of photo! Great job!