8 Of The Biggest Photographic Clichés

[ApolloLXII]

1: THE ARMS LENGTH SELF PORTRAIT (SELFIES) - Most commonly seen on Facebook where almost everbody present in the shot has to pull some kind of weird face or leer at the camera (usually a mobile phone camera) as a means of expressing just how much fun they are having. This is hardly photographic in the strictest sense and just achieves nothing more than a snapshot of people acting stupid.

2: THE HEADLESS NUDE - The idea behind this is so that the person posing for the photo won't be recognised. It's also the same sort of technique used to persuade girlfriends and wives to be the model in lieu of actually hiring someone professional to do the job. As most of these kinds of shots are done by amateurs, the results very rarely look any good.

3: A CHILD'S FACE SMEARED WITH FOOD OR DIRT - If the subject is the child, they will say that it is cute. In my opinion, I'd rather see a cute smile on a child's face instead of food or dirt which has a degree of repulsiveness to it. YUK!

4: SUNSET/SUNRISE - The sun rises and sets each day and as DSLR cameras begin to proliferate, so does the number of sunrise/sunset shots. There are two distinct types - one that has the sun rising/setting over a horizon and the other is compositionally formulaic involving foreground interest (eg: rocks), a rocky landscape extending away to the right into the middle ground with the setting/rising sun off set to the left. Most commonly seen in seascapes. Done to death and truly eye catching examples are a rarity.

5: COLOUR POPPING - An all Black and white shot with one prominent point of focus rendered in colour, for example, a red flower. Beginners should learn that Colour Popping doesn't suit a lot of images and those that continue using this technique should learn that it's a one trick pony who went lame a long time ago.

6: SHOTS OF HOMELESS PEOPLE - Unless you intend to shoot images for a photojournalism assignment, don't go bothering homeless people. It could be said that this is being exploitative and, as with any other human being, classed as being intrusive. Sit down and talk with them first and always ask permission to take their picture.

7: SOFT or MILKY WATER - A technique involving the slowing of the shutter speed that renders water into a softer type of texture or as a mist. It's been done to death, particularly in the U.K. where some magazines rehash articles about getting that "milky effect" from time to time.

8: OVERLY MANIPULATED PHOTOS - Photgraphs that look "weird" from having far too many effects and processes applied in Photoshop. Quite often, this kind of thing just kills a good photograph!