Frame Your Subject Using Natural Objects

Adding a frame to your photo can be a good way to make it stand out from the crowd and utilise more of your surroundings into the image.

Thinking about composition

In order to use the surrounding environment to create a frame for your image effectively, the image must still look pleasing to the eye. The frame is usually in the foreground of an image and you'll need to think about how far away you need to be and where to locate your subject within the image to make it work.

Uses for natural frames in an image

Frames can be used for many different purposes although the most common ones are to draw the eye to your subject, add depth to the image and to give the image some context. Sometimes frames such as archways can also be used to block out unwanted elements of your composition my altering the angle of the image slightly. 

When should I use a frame?

As with a lot of elements in photography, not every image merits the use of a frame. They can help to focus the image on a certain point but sometimes they will just add clutter to the frame so take the time to compose the image and decide whether the image looks better with or without it before proceeding. Sometimes if the frame is too ornate or too bright it can grab the attention away from the main focus of the image. 

In focus or not in focus?

To frame the shot, the object used doesn't have to be in focus. Although it's in the foreground, blurring it out can help to take focus off it yet still create a pleasing frame. Leaving the frame in focus can also work depending on the type of frame and the context of the image.