Composition: Fill the Frame - Caveat

I talked last time about filling the frame and cutting elements out of your image that don't contribute to its success. This typically means zooming in or walking closer, but don't take this too far and think that every picture should be a close-up. Sometimes it is better to fill the frame by zooming out.

Remember to pay attention to what you can see through the view finder (and not just what you are looking at.) Consider whether your picture would benefit from adding more of the scene.

Sometimes it is beneficial to add elements to your image that provide context or a more interesting composition. With kids, this often means showing enough of what is happening around them so that someone who wasn't there can tell what was going on. Many times making your child small in the frame can be compelling if the rest of the image is interesting and well composed.

Consider this shot of our daughter at the aquarium in Atlanta: