To paraphrase Winston Churchill, “There are too many rules of grammar up with which to put.” And the same holds true for photography rules, especially with regard to composition. Instructor Ian Worth admits that a few of these familiar notions can help frame an image, as long as you understand when they’re advisable and when they should be ignored.

Worth is a notable landscape photographer based in Wales who posts weekly “laid-back” behind-the scenes adventures that share practical tips to help others emulate his work and capture stunning in the field. The topic of today’s discussion is the validity of a concept known as “Clean Edges” or “Edge Awareness.”

According to this familiar slice of conventional wisdom you should carefully analyze the  perimeter of the frame and always remove any elements that could pull attention away from the primary subject. It’s true that in certain situations this approach will improve an image by eliminating distracting clutter. But there are also times when more introspection is warranted.

Worth demonstrates why consistently adhering to this rule will challenge the originality of your work. The episode begins by illustrating why clean edges can be very effective. Then he flips the script by pulling up a few dynamic images that demonstrate five reasons when this technique may be counterproductive, and why you “may want ignore this rule altogether.”

The point is that a strict adherence to the Edge Awareness rule “can make our images feel predictable and lack a sense of creativity.” That’s why ignoring this rule, depending upon the specific scene at hand, will actually enhance the composition and impact of an image by following Worth’s advice.

Worth’s thoughtful commentary and striking imagery reveal the power of his techniques far more effectively than we can summarize them here, so pay close attention and see if you agree. Then head out in the field over the weekend and shoot several images with and without applying the composition rules discussed above. You just may be surprised by the results you’re able to achieve.

Then take a look at Worth’s instructional YouTube channel where you’ll find a wide variety of helpful tips and techniques, along with an occasional discussion about controversial issues.

And be sure to watch a tutorial we featured recently with another accomplished pro who discusses the concept of Time Blending and demonstrates when, why, and how to use it for creating outdoor photographs with perfect exposure and pleasingly balanced tones.

Do your wildlife, nature, and landscape photos appear blurry or wavy even though you used the “proper” settings and achieved precise focus? The problem may not be a faulty camera or lens, but rather what instructor Matthew Gehly calls an image-killing “invisible threat” that’s easy to avoid.

Gehly is a professional wildlife photographer whose behind-the-scenes adventures share powerful techniques that all outdoor shooters can use to avoid common problems. This quick episode describes the concept of “heat haze” (otherwise known as heat shimmer, heat refraction, or heat distortion) that can easily result in unsharp images.

In less than seven minutes you’ll learn what causes this dilemma and how to spot it. Then Gehly provides seven “essential” tip for minimizing it’s impact, so you can capture detailed photographs when the situation arises. As he says, this environmental issue “is one of the primary killers of sharp shots.”

Making matters worse is the fact that you may not be aware that this distortion is happening until your return home and closely evaluate images on the computer, at which point you’re faced with a big disappointment. Worse yet, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to make an effective fix during post processing.

Gehly explains the concept like this: “Heat haze occurs whenever there’s a differences in surface and air temperatures. This disparity creates variations in air density which in turn refracts light in unpredictable ways.” The result is an unsightly shimmery or wavy distortion effect, especially when shooting from long-distances with telephoto lenses that can magnify the problem.

In other words, when sun heats the ground it warms air directly above it. The heated air is less dense than the cooler temperatures below, and this is the root cause of your disappointing, shimmering images. Fortunately, all is not lost, at least in the future, if you understand how to predict this occurrence and follow Gehly’s seven straightforward tips for shooting in a way that quickly eliminates the threat.

Gehly illustrates these problems and solutions with clear illustrations and in-the-field photographs so you’ll understand exactly what do the next time heat haze rears its ugly head. Gehly’s popular YouTube channel is full of simple how-to videos like this one, so be sure to take a look.

And while you’re at it, don’t miss the recent tutorial we featured with another accomplished outdoor pro who demonstrates several powerful in-camera effects for capturing spectacular landscape and wildlife photographs that jump off the screen.