Photography Lesson - The Importance of Straight Horizons

It is a little detail that can ruin a fabulous image. The lack of a straight horizon in a photo can wreck havoc on the viewer of your photos. Because our bodies are designed to keep our view level, looking a photo with a tilted horizon causes a disquieting confusion between the inner ear and the brain. The brain wants to tilt to straighten the appearance of the horizon while the inner ear says the person is already level.

Fixing a horizon in your photos is relatively simple. Take a moment before pressing the shutter to make sure the main horizon line of your composition is horizontal. Also, be sure that foreground objects don't create the illusion of a crooked horizon.

If you are editing a shot and realize there is a crooked horizon, simply use your editing software's "straighten" tool and then recrop the shot.