The foreground consists of anything that lies between you and your main subject.
Then there’s the middle ground, which is often the subject (i.e., the main point of interest in the photo).
And the background is made up of everything behind the subject.
The cover photo was taken from the top of the Mount-Royal mountain, Montreal. The foreground is the leaves of a tree, the subject is the city’s downtown, the background is the mountains.
Now, the foreground, middle ground, and background areas are not at fixed distances. They’re understood relative to one another.
In this photo, the foreground is the flowers, the subject is the couple, and the background is the bushes behind the couple.
Settings
In order to have a sharp foreground, subject, and background, you probably want a deep depth of field. This means that there should be a small aperture or a high f-stop. Probably anywhere between f/8 to f/20.
If the photo is handheld, the speed should not be any slower than 1/60, and the ISO should be the last variable, which will depend on the amount of light you have.
Now it’s your turn
Go out and try taking some photos with a foreground. If you send it to me via email I will add it to the post.