Let's say you are doing a documentary on pollution. You could talk about how bad things are, or you could simply cut to a scene like this. Since what people see on prime-time TV typically carries much more of an impact that what they hear, you are much better off showing things rather than talking about them. For the remainder of this section we'll concentrate on a narrower and more traditional definition of the term. Defining Composition C omposition can be defined as the orderly arrangement of elements in a scene which, when taken as a whole, conveys intent and meaning .
Television production involves both static composition and dynamic composition.
Static composition covers the content of fixed images such as paintings or still photos. B y studying the most enduring and aesthetically pleasing paintings over the centuries, as well as the most effective film and video scenes during the past 50 years, certain artistic principles emerge. Guidelines, Not Rules E ven though the principles that have emerged for good composition seem rather clear, they should always be considered guidelines and not rules . Composition is an art and not a science. If composition were totally a science, it could be dictated by a fixed set of rules and would end up being rigid and predictable, without room for creativity.