This Simple Viewfinder Tool Will Improve Your Composition

With its simplicity and effectiveness, a viewfinder can help transform a chaotic visual field into a well-balanced composition that communicates your artistic vision. Whether you’re a painter, sketch artist, or any kind of creative, this tool can elevate your craft by refining your approach to art composition.

In this article, we’ll explore how viewfinders help you find the right composition, define the shape of your artwork, and ensure everything fits proportionally on your canvas.

How to Edit with a Viewfinder

One of the greatest challenges in art is narrowing down what to include in a piece. A massive, bustling landscape or a busy still-life setup can present you with too much information. That’s where a viewfinder comes to the rescue—it acts like a physical cropping tool for your eyes.

Remove Visual Noise

When you hold up a viewfinder, it allows you to focus on a specific area, instantly removing distractions in your surroundings. Think of it as holding a camera lens up to the world. By framing a section of what you see, the unwanted clutter disappears, leaving behind a defined compelling composition.

For example, imagine sitting in a park. Without a viewfinder, you see everything—trees, jogging paths, children playing, the occasional squirrel darting by. But with a viewfinder, you can zero in on a singular compelling area that you would be blind to otherwise. That’s the power of editing your vision.

Finding the Best Shape for Your Art’s Composition

The shape and dimensions of your canvas can heavily influence the impact of your composition. Viewfinders not only help you focus on a smaller area, but they also allow you to test out different formats. You can check if a rectangular format or square format suits your painting best.

You could also draw out your composition and compare it with different formats. However when using your viewfinder you can get a more immediate idea of what shapes suit your composition best. This is because you can compare different shapes against one another right away.

Maintain Proportions and Fit Everything On the Canvas

Working out proportions can sometimes be tricky when sketching out your composition. Have you ever had the experience of starting a painting only to realize that you’ve run out of room before you’ve completed the composition?

This is where a viewfinder is handy. By isolating your subject, the tool provides a visual “slice” of your exact composition that fits perfectly within the dimensions of your canvas. You can ensure that all the important elements—whether it’s a figure, a tree, or an architectural detail—are proportionally placed within your painting.

For example, while painting a portrait, a viewfinder lets you easily assess how to fit the head, shoulders, and background into your frame without awkward cropping. It’s a straightforward way to avoid wasting time with redos and get it right the first time!

Using a Viewfinder in Your Own Work

Personally, I use this viewfinder by view catcher. I have been using it for years and it likely will last for the rest of my life. It is a very small investment that will serve you well for a long time . You can however make your own viewfinder if you prefer to do so. I used to make my own for quite a while, however found that they would get worn out quickly and easily. This is why I upgraded to the view catcher tool.

Whether you make your own or purchase one, I highly encourage you to get in the habit of using a viewfinder. It will help your composition skills immensely. This won’t become apparent and understood until you start to use one in your own work. You can even just practice by looking through it to find compelling compositions. By doing this, you are developing your eye to see more like an artist.

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