Composing Pictures lucidly explains the principles and approaches of how pictures are put together, and covers all factors that affect composition in traditional and contemporary art, in both still and moving pictures. A wide range of topics are covered with insights to drawing, color, power of borders, surface, symbol, dark and light, space in nature and space in pictures. It goes into the difference between movement and action, multiple station points, drapery as manifestation of forces, and the screen as a graphic surface among other topics in the section on film graphics. Understanding how a picture is made, rather than a discussion by dissection method, is thoroughly explored stressing how graphic forces work in pictures. Seemingly ordinary topics are met with new and insightful approaches. The book contains hundreds of diagrams as well as many works of great artists spanning almost all historical ages, cultures and styles. It is designed to be easily used with graphic content accompanying related text on each page.