Composition is the nonverbal component of webcomics. It tells you how the reader will feel emotion, suspense and pacing in the comic without any need for text. Composition involves organizing the elements of the panel to lead the reader’s attention around the page, to affect the mood, and to further illustrate what the text is saying. A well composed page is balanced, thoughtful, and readable; a poorly composed page can be jarring or dull. The best composed pages will help the narrative, giving the reader a better understanding of the comic without the need for text. If you know how to compose, you can tell a page of text with just one panel. And that’s what webcomics are all about.
Another compositional rule is that you need a focal point, where the eye naturally goes first and is hopefully where the most important information in the panel is. You can achieve this through contrast, placement, framing. For instance, if you’re doing a close up of a character, their face can be a focal point if it is near the center or set against a less cluttered background. The rest of the panel should not distract from that focal point. When the eye is directed, the panel reads very easily and the pacing is free to move along.
We also have depth and space which allow the creation of a setting and the giving of scale. Webcomics are just flat panels, so using depth will make things feel more real, or add to the mood. Different planes (foreground, midground, background) aid the reader in knowing where to look, and aid in setting the tone of the scene. A full background can make things feel cluttered, or anxious. An empty background can make the scene feel more isolated, or focused. It can also control the pacing, because you can make the reader read faster or slower based on the amount of visual data you give them. When you actively consider depth, the universe of the webcomic feels more real.
We also see a great use of composition to evoke emotion in figures and postures as well as the placement of figures within the panel. When a character is drawn in the corner of a panel, they can feel restricted or claustrophobic and when a character is drawn in the middle of a wide panel, they can feel empowered and alone. Even different views and angles in the comic evoke emotion. A low view, looking up at a character can make them feel more powerful while a high view, looking down at a character can evoke feelings of smallness and helplessness. By employing compositional techniques to show emotion, the comic becomes increasingly dramatic and emotional, even in scenes where there isn’t much dialogue.
Lastly, composition is great when it serves to clarify and enhance the readability of a panel. Panels should be relatively simple to read, with characters, actions, and settings clearly defined from one another. The purpose isn’t to draw convoluted scenes, but to make each panel as simple as possible. When your composition is streamlined and well-intentioned, your readers will be able to focus on the story instead of trying to decipher what’s happening. Composition is used as a narrative device rather than a flourish, and your webcomic will be able to hit your readers in the feels with laser-like precision. With visuals and story in perfect harmony, your webcomic is an incredibly effective vessel for stories that your readers will remember.