Leading Lines
Jun 11, 2023 15:08:42 #
Typically I just shoot what I think looks good and frame it so it looks right, but from time to time I do read about photo composition. I stopped my car because of the leading line provided by the wood dock which, as shown in the first image, pointed directly to the distant mountain. But after shooting that, I noticed the flowering bush that could be moved into the foreground as shown in the second image. I prefer that second image, but it occurs to me that in that image the bush assumes a more prominent role and is perhaps is now the subject of the picture. The leading line to that extent becomes a distraction, serving to pull attention away from the subject in the foreground. Should I be troubled by that distraction?
Or perhaps I should just conclude that composition rules are made to be broken? By the way, the name of this place is "Pretty Marsh".
Or perhaps I should just conclude that composition rules are made to be broken? By the way, the name of this place is "Pretty Marsh".
Jun 11, 2023 15:37:09 #
pecohen wrote:
Typically I just shoot what I think looks good and... (show quote)
I might come back later and see what others suggest. That scene is complex in many ways to have a great composition. I have some thoughts but not what I think is a solution.
Jun 11, 2023 15:37:59 #
Jun 11, 2023 15:40:21 #
If I was coming to the second image before reading your description I wouldn't think that it was all about the bush. If the bush was the intended subject, any attention-grabbing background would be a distraction and therefore a mistake. However, in landscape shots the subject is the scene as a whole and the bush plays a supporting role by adding to the scene.
Your original intent was to use the dock to lead the viewers' attention to the mountain - and that works fine. Neither composition is wrong unless they oppose your intention.
That's the thing about intentions - once you have a specific outcome in mind your choices can be assessed on the basis of the extent to which they achieve (or fail to achieve) your envisaged outcome. Only you know your intentions. There is no right or wrong image. They're just different, presumably because they're an expression of different intentions.
Your original intent was to use the dock to lead the viewers' attention to the mountain - and that works fine. Neither composition is wrong unless they oppose your intention.
That's the thing about intentions - once you have a specific outcome in mind your choices can be assessed on the basis of the extent to which they achieve (or fail to achieve) your envisaged outcome. Only you know your intentions. There is no right or wrong image. They're just different, presumably because they're an expression of different intentions.
Jun 11, 2023 15:40:48 #
spaceytracey
Loc: East Glacier Park, MT
pecohen wrote:
Typically I just shoot what I think looks good and... (show quote)
IMO, you have a progression of "leading Lines" here, the bush points to the dock which leads to the post off to the left which in turn leads to the shoreline & the small outcroppings which draw our eyes to the mountain. Nice.
Jun 11, 2023 15:41:59 #
Timmers
Loc: San Antonio Texas.
pecohen wrote:
Typically I just shoot what I think looks good and... (show quote)
The second image is an actual photographic image, while the first image is just another image to illustrate the principle of leading lines in a book about composition.
What I found rather interesting in your second image was the way the wind appears to be different on either side of the dock.
Jun 11, 2023 16:16:54 #
I think this is a case of "the cheese stands alone" me being the cheese. Because of the perspective #1 makes me feel as if I'm being drawn into the image. And maybe I'm looking towards the future not knowing what lies beyond the mountain or what my journey getting there will be like. One of the beautiful things about art, be it visual arts such as photography or music or any other arts, it can grab some of us while others might just think "meh, whatever"
Jun 11, 2023 16:38:18 #
pecohen wrote:
Typically I just shoot what I think looks good and... (show quote)
Great view of "peaceful" ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Jun 11, 2023 21:40:21 #
pecohen wrote:
Typically I just shoot what I think looks good and... (show quote)
To me, the second one is a landscape that holds my interest better and always draws me back to the foreground. The symmetry of the first one is not as interesting, it seems to me. --Richard
Jun 12, 2023 08:04:44 #
I prefer the second, and "rules" are guidelines, meant to be broken whenever doing so produces a better photo.
Jun 12, 2023 08:15:53 #
pecohen wrote:
Typically I just shoot what I think looks good and... (show quote)
"A long walk on a short pier" jumped into my head when I first viewed the images.
Composition rules are made to be used as suggestions. "Broken" is not the function of suggestions. To me, there seem to be competing views. I see the pier in a dominant position with a dominant body of water and a dominant landscape.
The two shots are well done. And there are stories in the views. The starkness of the pier does stop the eye at the end of it, in both shots. There are horizontal lines that are cutting across the view. The bush does give an anchoring spot to start the "walk" around the shot. However, the "walk" seems to be limited as being to the pier's edge in the water.
I do have to say that I do not "see" a marsh, as I think of the term. A fishing hole, perhaps.
Lowering your eye to the ground would probably give a better perspective to use.
Jun 12, 2023 08:36:26 #
I like the first shot. You have more than the dock in the way of leading lines. The two shorelines also point directly at the mountain in the background. Now you have three leading lines which are very strong. In the second the symmetry is destroyed by shifting to the right to include the bush which now becomes a distraction. If you want the best leading lines, in my book it's #1. If you are intending to make the bush the subject, it's not a strong enough presence for that.
Jun 12, 2023 09:54:18 #
Thanks to everyone who commented here. My own preference is for the second image, but aside from that I mostly agree with all of the comments. It's interesting to read all of these different ways to think about the topic.
Jun 12, 2023 11:30:34 #
Jun 12, 2023 13:11:10 #
rdarlington43
Loc: Charlotte, NC
profbowman wrote:
To me, the second one is a landscape that holds my interest better and always draws me back to the foreground. The symmetry of the first one is not as interesting, it seems to me. --Richard
I am not a professional but I do like the second one better. If I was the owner of the land and the pier I would prefer the second one because to me it seems to draw in more memories of that spot, its changing nature and what the entire view captures.
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