Head cropping - when is it right ot wrong ??

as per the title

been wanting to discuss this for ages and what finally prompted this post was the comment in this thread ( not my thread or comment) ....
https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1385014

so what is wrong with pic's 2 and 3 and the way the head is cropped ?
Its seen all the time in professional magazine publications etc

Are there some broad rules that should be kept in mind ?

regards
Dave

I don't see a problem with 2 or 3 TBH.

A crop either works or it doesn't .There are no definite rules in my book. An crop either looks good or it doesn't. You can have the same crop on two different people and it may work on one and not the other.

the poster jsut said they weren't to his personal taste. Do whatever you think looks good. I headcrop quite often, but the crop on those looks a little odd to me -- probably because the hair is a bit odd looking.

I'm not a huge fan of head cropping, but its all the rage since Peter Hurley made it his signature. Most people are not doing Hurley style work, but they adopt his cropping. As mentioned above crop to your own taste, but I thought the one where the top of her hair was cut off appeared awkward to me.

gonzogolf wrote in post #16997681
I'm not a huge fan of head cropping...

...but I thought the one where the top of hear hair was cut off appeared awkward to me.

Agree on both.

RMH wrote in post #16997654
the poster jsut said they weren't to his personal taste. Do whatever you think looks good. I headcrop quite often, but the crop on those looks a little odd to me -- probably because the hair is a bit odd looking.

thanks all for responding

.... so do what you like and screw everyone else's negative comments ?? haha
well maybe not that harsh, but the other way is always having people criticising it

so ... how's this for a bit of a rule ....

if the head/hair is going to get cropped, make it significant so its showing an intention of making the face really prominent....
rather than just cropping a little off the top, that may as well have been left there

say, the difference between these 2 ....

Davenn wrote in post #16998508
thanks all for responding

.... so do what you like and screw everyone else's negative comments ?? haha
well maybe not that harsh, but the other way is always having people criticising it

so ... how's this for a bit of a rule ....

if the head/hair is going to get cropped, make it significant so its showing an intention of making the face really prominent....
rather than just cropping a little off the top, that may as well have been left there

say, the difference between these 2 ....

I like the top picture better.

Im not opposed to head crop if it makes the image aestethically pleasing to me. Depending on the picture, I sometimes try to place one of the eyes right on the corner of the rule of thirds grid. Sometimes the only way to do this to crop part of the hair.

hi losangelino

Thanks for your comment

That destroys my theory huh
I guess, in the end, it's really going to boil down to what the client likes, which will still most likely be different to what the photographer likes.

To be honest, when I started this thread, I really didn't expect the answer to be so "subjective to taste"
I was really expecting some basic rules, like that of thirds, but can be broken when called for

we live and learn

thanks
Dave

Sometimes head cropping looks good specially when it enhances your model's eyes, or smile...

I agree though that in certain situations dont look good. Each case is different and it depends on what your looking for.

Here is one from that, to me, kind of works with the head crop. It brings more attention to his eyes. Subject is my son.

Yup, agree with that


Dave

Cropping the top of the head is absolutely fine.... I do it quite a bit...

You just have to make sure there is enough negative space that is not too distracting to prevent the shot looking cramped..

Here is my example of head cropping:

IMAGE LINK: https://flic.kr/p/nFs7​Wg

WOW, Trevor, that's stunning

is it a nightmare getting the gold body paint off ?
( I'm assuming its not photoshopped colouring ?)

OK, good thought .... will keep that one in mind

thanks for your input

cheers
Dave

losangelino wrote in post #16998579
I like the top picture better.

Im not opposed to head crop if it makes the image aestethically pleasing to me. Depending on the picture, I sometimes try to place one of the eyes right on the corner of the rule of thirds grid. Sometimes the only way to do this to crop part of the hair.

having had Trevor make the comment about the negative space

do you think your comment may have been because of the cramped look of the second image ?

Dave

Rushmore wrote in post #17006897
Cropping the top of the head is absolutely fine.... I do it quite a bit...

You just have to make sure there is enough negative space that is not too distracting to prevent the shot looking cramped....

I agree. Do whatever it takes to make an interesting image.