What is negative space?

When composing a piece of artwork, we generally work with three
elements: the frame, the positive space, and the negative space
(also called white space). The frame is the bounding size of the
artwork, the positive space is the subject, and the negative space is
the empty space around the subject. The three images below will
give you a basic understanding of this principle.

Negative space helps defi ne a subject, so subjectively speaking,
negative space works when there’s a balance between the positive
and negative spaces. Negative space also works when it draws
the viewer’s eye into the subject at hand.
To show how negative space works, look at this personal logo
design for Peter Ryan. Did you notice how the middle of the letter.
is cleverly utilized to become the letter P? This has been achieved by
reversing out the positive space of the letter P into negative space.

To put the importance of negative space and the frame into
perspective, think about this: Do you ever wonder why when you
watch a movie at the cinema, it’s more beautiful than if you watch
it at home on a square-format TV? The cinematographer has composed
the scene knowing that his frame was going to be viewed
in the widescreen format of a cinema screen. However, once the
movie gets cropped down to the square format of a non-widescreen
TV, much of the beauty, negative space, and composition
of the scene is lost, making for a less-appealing image.

The point to remember here is if the subject moves in any direction,
inside or outside the frame, the shape and amount of negative
space will change, so it’s always important to readjust your frame to
the subject at hand.

Post By Computer Zoom Design