Anatomy of Great Photographs
by Peter Van Rhijn

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“You don’t take a photograph, you make it,” said the great landscape photographer Ansel Adams. How, then, do you make a great photograph? In Anatomy of Great Photographs, seasoned photographer Peter Van Rhijn investigates the fundamentals of what makes an image great, breaking down the “anatomy” of such images into essential components he calls the photograph’s “ingredients.” Using over ninety colour images of his own work from all over the globe, Van Rhijn clearly identifies the ingredients in each image and explains why they work and how to use them, as well as describing describing how photographs were taken and the choices that were made both before and after in post-production editing. Colour, emotional impact, composition in all its facets, compelling use of negative space, tension— understanding these and other crucial ingredients will provide powerful tools to all those who are seeking ways to bring the “wow” factor into their own photography work.

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Peter Van Rhijn has been a professional stock photographer for almost half a century. His work as a family physician, a career that has run alongside that as a photographer, gave him a rational and methodical approach to photography that led him to examine his own images, as well as those of others, and eventually identify what he calls the “ingredients.” Having lectured widely on this subject, he decided to put his method into book form, to make it more accessible to all those who are interested in photography. His photographs have been published in many books celebrating the beauty of nature, including: Endangered Spaces, The Last Wilderness, and Canada, These Things We Hold Dear—a Centennial Celebration. He has two adult children and lives in the Greater Toronto Area with his wife and dog Chloe. You can follow him at: www.naturephotos.com

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Peter Van Rhijn