While most of us hate the negative advertising that accompanies political campaigns like in the season that just passed, not all things negative are negative. In art, photography and design, negative space is an important creative tool when designing your composition. Negative space is generally defined as the space around the main subject(s). While some may feel it is nothingness, in reality, it is an important part of successful imagery and design.

In album design, the equal use of negative and positive space in a page layout is considered by many to be a better design. This basic and often overlooked principle of design gives the eye a “place to rest,” increasing the appeal of a layout through subtle means. When you look at these two album page layouts, you see how the design with more negative space is easier on the eye to view than the “busy” layout packed full of images.

Negative space helps define a subject, and draws the viewer’s eye into your subject. If you work with negative spaces rather than on the subject (positive space), you’ll often end up with a more accurate and aesthetically pleasing design and balanced composition.

From a philosophical perspective, the famous Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu describes the importance of what we call negative space this way:

Though thirty spokes may form the wheel,
it is the hole within the hub
which gives the wheel utility.
It is not the clay the potter throws,
which gives the pot its usefulness,
but the space within the shape,
from which the pot is made.
We hammer wood for a house,
but it is the inner space
that makes it livable.
Such is the utility of non-existence.

The best method to learn how to master the use of negative space in photography is to practice. Remember that negative space is always related to the edge of the image (i.e., the frame or the edge of the album page). Negative space is not constant, so you must continually readjust the position of your subject within the edge of your frame or page layout, just as you would your aperture, shutter speed or lighting.