Rendering a CG Scene - An Introduction to Computer Graphics for Artists - page 229

Fig. 12.10 La Ventana , acrylic on canvas 35″ × 58″ (© 2006 Andrew Paquette). The focus of this
composition is not just the arch, but the space under and above it
subject and exclude those that are not relevant. In a scene from the movie The Abyss ,
the subject is the villain as he is struck by a large spanner held by the lead character
played by Ed Harris. The composition is asymmetrical in the sense that the weight of
the objects in the scene is not centered, but the subject, the action of one man being
struck by another, is centered. The camera points up to provide a view of a swinging
light that hangs from a cable, as well as glimpses of the cramped compartment the two
men are fi ghting within. Most of both men's bodies are cropped out of the shot. The
compositional emphasis is on Harris' arms, the spanner, and the point of contact on
the villain's body. It is economical, forceful, exciting, and dramatic.
In Disney's all-CG animated feature Tangled, There is an exterior shot of the
tower occupied by Rapunzel and its immediate environment. The subject of this
shot is the mood of the place. It is beautiful, peaceful, and isolated. The high
walls of rock covered with vegetation cast strong shadows into the scene to
emphasize how cut off this pool of idyllic peace is from the rest of the world.
For this subject, the tower is not the subject but the isolation of the tower. This
is why it is a centered composition despite the tower being on the far right of the
frame. If it hadn't been moved to the right, the heavily shadowed wall of vegeta-
tion on the left would be less clear, effectively cropping an important part of the
subject from the frame.
Learning to make appealing compositions takes practice and an ability to under-
stand the goal of a composition. If you look at composition as a search for “a nice
angle” as opposed to a way to focus on the part of the scene you want viewers to be
engaged by, you are less likely to fi nd the compositions you need (Fig. 12.10 ).
A composition can be thought of as an important part of the story-telling process.