My Own Experiments
These pictures were taken, recreating the style of Cindy Sherman. Her pictures are all edited to be black and white, with the model set to be following the leading lines, repeating the verticals. To recreate this picture, I had to get my model to be in front of a brick wall, not leaning against it, but a couple of steps in front. The picture should be taken at a lower angle, following her style, which allows the perspective to become more unique. We are used to seeing the world from eye-level. We rarely see photos shot from low angles, because only children and maybe ants see the world from that perspective.
The great thing about this picture, is that the angle gives it the 'superman' effect. If you want to make your subjects look powerful, mighty, and grand– photograph them from a low angle. Making the girl look more, powerful and serious, allows a strong sense of equality to role through, that women are as equally as powerful as men, as superman is well- a man.
By shooting from a low angle, you also can integrate leading lines in the background to make your viewer look at the subject of your image. The point of leading lines is to direct your viewer’s eye. The purpose of composition is to tell your subject what to look at. For example, if you’re driving a car in the streets, the road signs will tell you which direction you should drive. The same in photography and art– your composition tells the viewer what to look at.So when you’re photographing from a low angle, look for leading lines in the background. Whether that be from skyscrapers, from store-fronts, or other elements in the back.