NOTES & NOTIONS for the LESS ADVANCED WORKER .sx Every week an article will appear under this heading dealing with a topic of interest to the novice in photography .sx A WORD ABOUT VIEWPOINT .sx NATURALLY I have made some reference from time to time to the very important question of the viewpoint - the particular position from which a subject is photographed .sx Important as this obviously is , it frequently receives far too little attention .sx Too often the beginner catches sight of something which he considers will make a good photograph , and straightway " snaps " it .sx Perhaps it is fair to assume that the fact that the subject caught his eye indicates that it was worth photographing ; but it by no means follows that the spot from which the subject was seen is the best from which to photograph it .sx The odds are against it .sx What might have been good from one viewpoint might be far better from another .sx I am not taking the lighting into account for the moment , although that is a weighty consideration , but merely standpoint .sx There are six different ways of altering the aspect and arrangement of a subject , without counting going right round it , when that is possible .sx They are :sx moving forward or backward ; to the right or the left ; higher up or lower down .sx It does not follow that all of these are available in any given case , but it is often possible to make a combination of some of them :sx for example , moving forward to the right and thereby getting higher up .sx Of course , there are many occasions when there is no chance for walking around .sx The subject has to be taken then and there , or not at all .sx But for the majority of subjects there is more or less time available for getting at the best viewpoint .sx Fig. 1 was not worth taking at all , especially as I already had several better versions of it .sx But as a sort of experimental exercise I manoeuvred to right and left till I got the top of the jet of water against the column beyond .sx It would have been lost against the sky , but as it is it stands out clearly , and is curiously suggestive of a distaff .sx In this case the game was not worth the candle ; but it often happens that something of this sort is of great importance .sx It may make all the difference to find just the exact position for bringing two things into relationship as in this case ; or to do the opposite , and prevent a juxtaposition which would be unfortunate .sx It is neglecting this sort of side-stepping that leads to something in the distance coming into ridiculous connection with something in the foreground ; as when a tree apparently sprouts from a cow's back , or a lamp-post from a man's head .sx Often , as in Fig. 1 , a pace to the right or the left makes all the difference .sx It would have been easy , too , to show examples of the great alteration often made by approaching a subject or receding from it .sx To think of a familiar example , imagine a cottage with a church tower behind it .sx From a distance the tower may rise high above the cottage roof , but on walking towards the cottage the tower sinks lower and lower , till at close quarters it is invisible .sx In such a case the viewpoint is decided according to whether it is desired to show the cottage only , or to include the tower .sx Figs .sx 2 and 3 are examples of several versions of Anstey's Cove taken consecutively , but all different .sx The differences were entirely the result of shifting the viewpoint , and in those shown the alteration in arrangement was mainly due to taking a higher standpoint in one case than in the other .sx Broadly , it may be said that a high viewpoint tends to spread the subject out ; a low one to compress it .sx The bay looks much wider in one than in the other ; while the low viewpoint narrows the expanse of water , and at the same time gives more importance to the foreground rocks .sx Whether a high or a low viewpoint should be chosen when both are available depends on circumstances , and is a matter for consideration .sx As in this case there is no harm in trying both .sx The results will certainly differ .sx Of course , there is another important point to bear in mind once a standpoint has been chosen , and that is the direction in which the lens is pointed .sx It may be swung a bit to the right or the left , thereby both excluding and including ; or with many subjects it can be pointed upwards or downwards .sx All these things are going to make a difference , for better or worse .sx Fig. 4 is somewhat similar to Fig. 1 , but here it was not only a case of side-stepping , but of moving backwards or forwards , and the field of operations was limited .sx The object was to get the church tower in the arch formed by the whale's jaw-bones , because as a record this seemed the most sensible thing to do .sx The bones themselves could have been taken from several other positions , but there was only the one spot from which the tower could be seen exactly between them .sx This , too , is rather a trifling subject - just a holiday record ; but if we get into this habit of being fastidious about position when taking everyday subjects , it will stand us in good stead when we are faced with more serious pictorial considerations .sx There may possibly be only one practicable viewpoint ; but even if there are no more than two it is highly probable that one is better than the other .sx W.L.F.W. .sx THESE COMPETITIONS .sx IN a certain photographic competition there is a class labelled " Still-life , Nature Studies , Architectural Subjects including Interior Views .sx " There are other classes which will doubtless appeal more strongly to most photographers , but to me this is the most fascinating of all .sx Just think of the diversity of subjects possible , and of the result .sx Can you imagine the dismay of the judges on being faced with the task of deciding between two such absolute dissimilarities as a herd of mongeese ( or should it be mongooses ?sx ) at grips with an elephant , tiger , or cobra ( or whatever it is they do get to grips with ) , and a group of vegetables suitably arranged and lighted ?sx The former is a nature-study , far removed from still-life , the latter so still that one hardly notices any life .sx If you think of trying your luck , my advice to you is to be careful of your choice of subject .sx For example , the group of vegetables mentioned would in their natural surroundings be classed as " landscape , " I fancy , and unless specially noteworthy in some way , hardly likely to compete successfully with landscapes of the more approved type .sx A picture of little Tommy engaged in putting a lump of toffee where it does most good , would ( though quite natural ) certainly not be classed as a nature-study , and most certainly not as still-life .sx A picture , however , of little Tommy's tummy ( taken with the latest form of camera , let down the gullet by a cord and hauled back after the exposure is made ) , while possibly still not classifiable as " still-life , " would justify its entry as an " interior view , " and would certainly not be lacking in interest and originality .sx Among the entries received there will most assuredly be the birds on the nest or feeding their young ones , the field-mice clinging to a cornstalk , the usual array of collars , fruit , glassware , and miscellaneous oddments which we see in all the exhibitions .sx To ensure success it seems to me that something really new is wanted , such as a study of a plumber calling to his mate , which would be a really touching bit of nature-study and practically a still-life .sx Then what about " Bookmakers at Kempton " ?sx " Informal portrait class , " you may think .sx Perhaps ; but though far from still-life , surely eligible as a study of nature , almost human .sx Now for architecture .sx Any edifice erected by man is quite in order , but it must be novel and interesting .sx A worm's-eye view of the Eiffel Tower , for example , would be sufficiently novel , and a picture of the Bank of England , where interest accumulates , would seem to be the sort of thing required .sx Yes ; it's a great competition , but I'm sorry for the judges .sx With such a heterogeneous mass of possible subjects to pick winners from , their task borders on the superhuman .sx Were I one of them , I would certainly induce my fellow-victims to co-opt the one man capable , in my opinion , of tackling the job , " The Walrus , " who , after having been rampant in " Piffle " for so long , would be able to face the task and yet preserve his sanity .sx " VERITAS " .sx PICTURES of the WEEK .sx Some Critical Comments on the Beginners' prints reproduced on the opposite page .sx THE thing that catches the eye in the first place has a great deal to do with one's estimation of a picture .sx First impressions count for a lot , and if in some instances they are corrected by later study , such occasions are rare .sx The eye has a great capacity for summing things up in one comprehensive glance , and , if the picture does not appeal at once , or if the wrong thing draws the attention , it is generally the case that the arrangement is not wholly as it should be .sx First Impressions .sx To take No .sx 1 , " Spanning the " , by W. Matthews , as an instance , the things that catch the eye in the first case are the tree on the left and the railings in the foreground .sx These , to say the least , are scarcely agreeable features , nor such as one would choose to build up a picture with ; and , if this be admitted , it is pretty obvious that something is wrong .sx And on referring to the title this conclusion is confirmed , for it indicates that it was intended that the bridge , and not the tree or the railings , should be the centre of attraction .sx As the picture stands , however , the bridge is but an incident of the background .sx That foreground is too insistent for it , and it does not stand a chance .sx It therefore follows that the arrangement must be revised if the implication of the title is to be carried out and the bridge made to attract and hold the attention .sx The bridge must be made the dominant feature , and , as with such a foreground it would be impossible , the latter must be re-arranged .sx It might be possible , given a suitable sky , to dispense with any other item in the foreground but the reflection of the bridge in the water , but such a state of affairs is only likely to present itself very infrequently .sx Revising the Arrangement .sx Did it happen , the resultant picture should prove extraordinarily fine , but alternatively , there might be found from somewhere in the neighbourhood of the flagstaff a less obtrusive foreground , which , while giving scale to the bridge , did not interfere with its predominance .sx A revision of the arrangement such as is implied by either case , of course , involves another visit to the spot and the retaking of the subject ; but it would be worth while if only for the reason that it would teach the value of giving consideration before the exposure is made to the way in which the subject will appear on the plate .sx It would also be of service in showing the difference between what the eye sees and what the lens records .sx In viewing a scene , the eye is selective .sx In the case in point it is conceivable that it might disregard the foreground entirely , and rest upon the bridge .sx The camera , necessarily , records all that comes within its range , and while experience will eventually teach us to look at subjects in the same way , in our novitiate we are apt to rely too much upon our untrained vision .sx The consequence is that we find , as here , things which did not seem of importance to the eye assuming an unexpected pride of place in the print .sx Relative Proportions .sx 4 .sx