Toontown Dominance

Photographic Innoventions by Scott Thomas

If you want to make something you are photographing stand out in a photo, make it dominant. Dominance is easy to see in a photo. It is an offshoot of filling the frame as the dominant subject shares the photo with something else. The placement of the dominant subject helps to tell the story.

My first example is from Mickey’s Toontown Fair. The washroom key in the gas pump has always given me a laugh. Pete is not very nice, is he? To tell this story I made the washroom key dominant by getting in close using the Tokina 11-16mm ultra wide angle lens at a focal length of 11mm and an aperture of f/16. This allowed me to keep everything in focus so you could see the relationship between the key and Pete’s Garage.

The washroom key for Pete's Garage is in a unique place in the Magic Kingdom's Toontown, Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida
The washroom key for Pete’s Garage is in a unique place.
Nikon D70/Tokina 11-16mm, 1/40s, f/16, ISO 200, EV +1.0, 11mm focal length

My second example is from the Toontown Farmer’s Market. I wanted the fruit in focus but the busy market behind it a bit out of focus. This gives the idea it is a market but the focus is on the oranges and apples which are the dominate subject of the photo. I did that by increasing the size of the aperture from f/16 to f/5.6 and getting in real close to the oranges. Remember the smaller the aperture number, the larger the opening in the lens.

Toontown Farmer's Market has healthy and nutritious snacks in the Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida
Toontown Farmer’s Market has healthy and nutritious snacks like these oranges and apples.
Nikon D70/Tokina 11-16, 1/30s, f/5.6, ISO 200, EV +1.0, 11mm focal length

Next time you are at a Disney park or anywhere with your camera, consider telling a story with a dominant subject.

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Scott's "Photographic Innoventions" blog focuses on intermediate to advanced photography concepts and techniques relevant for Point and Shoot and Digital SLR cameras.

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