STEP BY STEP EXPERIMENT WITH ASPECT RATIOS
Next time you’re out on a walk, switch between the image formats on your camera, and see how they force you into composing your images differently
1 Find your camera’s aspect ratio setting
Search for Aspect Ratio in your camera’s menu system. On my Canon DSLR it’s called ‘Cropping/Aspect Ratio’ and appears under the red tab – the default setting is 3:2. You can see the effect of choosing a different aspect ratio on a DSLR’s Live View display, as black bars (inset image) will show the new edges of the frame. The same visual guide appears in a mirrorless camera’s electronic viewfinder and Live View display. Having to position your subject within the new frame edges will slow you down and help you see potential images in a different way.
2 4:3 aspect ratio
The traditional aspect ratio for 35mm film, 4:3 creates a tighter frame that’s ideal for photographing a single subject. It works well in both landscape and portrait orientations. Here I captured a continuation of the same object; as the framing is tight, I shot at f/5.6 to allow a shallow depth of field while retaining the main subject as the focal point.
The 4:3 aspect ratio works particularly well for portraits, where the placement of the subject in the middle of the frame, captured with a shallow depth of field, keeps the viewer’s focus where it needs to be.
3 16:9 aspect ratio
The widest frame possible, 16:9 allows you to capture the most visual content in your images. Use 16:9 to lend your landscape photography a cinematic wide feel; for street photography, different subjects can easily be incorporated within the frame. On a recent daily walk, I used the 16:9 ratio in two different ways: shooting in landscape orientation, with the fog surrounding the benches, I framed up with the benches at the side and allowed the fog to fill up the rest of the image. Then I rotated the camera to capture this tall image. Both shots would make a distinctive print.
4 1:1 aspect ratio
Popular on Instagram, the 1:1 format harks back to 6 x 6 medium-format film cameras, and is the tightest aspect ratio option offered on most digital cameras. 1:1 is effective for highlighting an individual subject or for showing repetitive patterns. In these examples, I used the 1:1 ratio in two different ways: first, putting the subject in the corner of the frame to create a distinctive composition; and then using it to capture the repeating patterns of a plant (inset). Choosing this ratio creates a compact but tightly focused image. You could always expand the 1:1 ratio and use it for macro photography.