Kuzano

Square was popular in the fashion industry so as to eliminate portrait vs landscape in framing decisions.

In fact, also popular in medium format was 6X7 as a direct aspect ratio for Magazine Pages.

Press changed down from 4X5 Press Camera's, in the 60's to the 6X9 centimeter (2x3 inch) medium format. 6X9 is noted as being 2:3 aspect ratio on 35mm film, or full frame sensors.

6X9 had the difficulty that most film processors did not use equipment that allowed enlargement or printing of the 6X9CM files size (as a negative size primarily), while they all were equipped for Square, and 6X7, along with the "miniature frame" 35mm film.

Frames for prints also followed some of these same guidelines.

Yes, when film was split and put into canisters or rolls for 35mm (24mm x 35mm) it was known as the "miniature film frame size"). Interesting that it is now called Full Frame in digital. What a YUKK :-D :-D :-D

Mark7829 Loc: Calfornia

Vivian Maier shot portraits, no landscape photography or sports, wildlife. It really has to do with the subject matter rather than technique.

DJO

1:1 is in no way unflattering, it's just different. When I shoot square, I shoot square. Even drugstores sell square picture frames.

You shouldn't criticize things you don't understand.

jackm1943 Loc: Omaha, Nebraska

:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

Dick Z. Loc: Downers Grove IL

The only advantage I can see is a horizontal or vertical could be taken without tilting the camera. Really, when you take a vertical or horizontal shot there is absolutely no cropping, as you see the full frame either way.

John_F Loc: Minneapolis, MN

It has been debated in many articles, books and treatices that the Golden Rectange is the shape of natural beauty. I won't go into the details but suffice it to say I agree, the arguments convince. The Golden Rectangle has side such their ratio 1.681.... : 1 , that is - (1 + square root of 5 )/2 This number comes from one of Euclid's propositions. Now 3 by 2 is 1.5:1 or almost the Divine Ratio of which the Golden Rectangle is constructed. The ratio 3:2 is also the 36 mm by 24 mm frame size of 35 mm film fame which is held to be the definition of FF. No sensor can be made to Golden Rectangle dimensions because the square root of 5 guarantees the fraction has no end digit. But a sensor that comes close could be made, but I don't think any camera company would go out on that limb.

stan0301 Loc: Colorado

For many years I used the Rollie 2 1/4 SLRs (all the lenses from 30mm to 500mm) the thing is "the square image" is a little unusual and it will crop either way--about ten years ago I put them into two large boxes and practally gave them to Adorama--when I look at the about 72mb images there is a lot of junk there--if Adorama offered to swap me back I would have to turn them down
Stan

Ranjan Loc: Currently Cyber-Nation!

Yes but the natural image is stereoscopic and aided by the organic computer that has the ability to fluidly zoom into the segment of interest while ignoring the rest of the image in the frame. The frame becomes secondary, unless one deliberately pays attention to it, in natural viewing.

creativ simon Loc: Coulsdon, South London

I frame many of my works square

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Not only but we see 3D because of the stereoscopic vision (also why we become cross eyed when we look at something too close ~ and get ghosts when looking through a set of fingers by example)

Morry Loc: Palm Springs, CA

I also used Hasselblad for wedding and portrature work. Another advantage not mentioned is if one's main product sold are wedding albums -- I found square easier albums to put together and also to order pages. I used only 5x5, 8x8, 10x10 inch size pages ordered from Artleather. My customers seemed to love it. Never a complaint because of square photos in 17 years of doing weddings.
Another oblique reason for using Hasselblad instead of using anything else. A number of people seemed to be of the opinion that a Hasselblad user's work was better just by virtue of using Hasselblad. I never believed that -- but continued to use Hasselblad because of the high quality and ease of use. It simply -- I thought was good for business. I retired from wedding photography and portraits in 1994. Obviously things have changed quite a bit since those years.
Regarding some opinions as to which is more artistic. I always felt that my format choice depended on the composition of the subject matter. Some walls that I have hung large framed photographs just called out for square (in my mind). With square negatives I had that easy "choice".

twowindsbear

And you don't fave a very firm grasp of the metric system, either. You're off by a factor of 10.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Enough already. boberic recognized he made a mistake as we all do.

You want to lynch him for it? :hunf: :hunf: :hunf:

Indiana Loc: Huntington, Indiana

The rectangle is the dominate shape for the human eye. That is why magazines, newspapers, copy paper, and endless other shape sensitive items are predominately rectangles. The square is the second choice by demand.

forjava Loc: Half Moon Bay, CA

People here dissing the square image layout? Square is established in (1) painting and in (2) photography. Examples of (1) and of (2), anybody?

(1) Painting in square format: I’ve uploaded a quickie APS-C NEF snapshot I just made after reading this topic. The upload is a square-format painting in a square frame. This painting example is appropriate to the head-and-shoulders subject. A rectangle format for this portrait would distract the eye with Wanderlust. A near-identical oil of the same model, Marianne, also rendered by Franz von Stuck, hangs in Villa Stuck.

(2) Photography in square format: A fellow hog uploaded a still life a couple of months ago. It told the story of a tomato, fresh from the garden, on a table, accompanied by a salt shaker and a utensil, all in a square layout. As square put a little extra "still" into this still life, I posted my appreciation of his square concept.

Finally, for a quick take on square’s aesthetics, see http://truecenterpublishing.com/photopsy/square_format.htm

Square is a trend, as other hogs are noting here. Example: Ruby Lane requires square product photography.