Contrast is achieved in a layout by using different picture sizes and shapes. This helps add interest and drama to the layout. It also aids the reader's flow through each element to improve communication.

Lead, Body, and End Pictures

When you are laying out a page that is dominated by photographs, such as a picture story or picture essay, the selection and number of pictures should be determined by the importance and complexity of the story. Of course, the amount of space you have to lay out the story is a factor. However, no matter how important or complex the story may be, your basic picture requirements remain the same. Every story must have a beginning, a middle, and an ending. Additionally, every layout should have one large dominant photograph to grasp the attention of the viewer. Other photographs used in your layout should not exceed 50 percent of the size of the dominant photograph. The two most important pictures again are the lead and the end photographs. Besides having the necessary stopping power to attract the attention of the reader and creating the desire to know more about the subject, the lead picture should give the reader a hint as to what the story is about. In other words, the lead photograph performs the same function as the opening paragraph in a written news story. The end photograph should help the reader to see the significance of the story, summarize it, and bring it to a logical conclusion. The remaining photographs in a story should consist of a variety of sizes, shapes, long shots, medium shots, and close-ups. Their task is to maintain the interest that is built up by the lead and carry it throughout the story until the end shot is reached The body photographs, like the middle of any story, are the "meat" of the whole statement that you are trying to make and should not disappoint the reader.

Layout Space and Editing

The space allowed for a story, for the most part, is predetermined. Military newspapers, as well as civilian publications, retain their page size issue after issue. The board on which you mount your display prints may also limit the size of your layout. Therefore, your story must fit the space allowed and not vice versa.

It has already been stated that the lead and end photographs are the two most important. This does not mean, however, that when you go out on an assignment you should have a predetermined lead and an end shot in mind. On the contrary, the lead and end photographs are selected from the overall coverage. Once the story is shot, you screen the proofs and select the photographs. Always choose the lead picture first. Next, choose the end picture. After selecting the lead and end pictures, choose the body pictures. After all the photographs have been selected, edit them so only those that are absolutely necessary for telling the story remain.

The editing process must be cold and objective. Forget the fact that you may have hung by one toe from a 100-foot flag pole to obtain a certain shot. If the shot does not fit or is not essential, then it has no place in the story. During the editing process, you should select only those pictures that are valuable communication symbols when arranged in a logical and story-telling manner.

After you have selected the lead, end, and body pictures, you should then make a thumbnail sketch to determine picture placement and size.

There is a certain amount of aesthetics involved in a layout. After gaining experience by doing a few layouts, you tend to "feel" your way. Nevertheless, there must be a starting point. For the most part, it is strictly mechanical.

All elements, titles, subtitles, pictures, copy, and white space should be aligned with one or more of the other elements on the page or pages. This system of aligning elements, or the "buddy" system as it is called, is another way of saying that margins must be established and maintained throughout the layout. From the very beginning, you must establish a definite set of margins to provide consistency from element to element and from page to page.

Layout is second in importance only to the story content; like the frame on a picture, it can make or break your work. For it to be effective, it requires skill, imagination, and painstaking care.

Today, most layouts are constructed using computers. There is a vast variety of software packages available on the market that are used specifically for this purpose. The use of computers in electronic imaging and layout is discussed in chapter 3 of this training manual.

Figure 1-6.-Picture essay-Continued.