Pic of the Week 3/25/22

“Mossy Morning”

Location: Bonham State Park, Bonham, TX

Date taken: 2/20/22

I love lines. I love straight lines, curvy lines, diagonals, converging lines, diverging lines, whatever lines I can find. Often times, this is one of the first things I look for when scoping out a composition. There’s just something about using a leading line to draw the viewer’s eye right to your subject that I find fascinating in photography. These lines can be used more than just drawing the eye to the subject. Lines can create barriers and even frames that keep the viewer’s attention on the main subject.  

While we were out exploring Bonham State Park, I noticed this grouping of stacked logs on the forest floor. The rising sun was peering through the forest illuminating just short pockets of the scene. The most interesting portions of the photo were lit with a soft early morning luminescence. The green moss glowed in the warmth and added extra depth to the scene.

In addition to lines, you can also use transitions of light or color to help draw the viewers attention. Depending on where the light is in relation to the subject, this technique can really help focus the eye to the main subject. Looking at this image you’ll notice the main subject(s) are illuminated by the sunlight. All the other parts of this photo are primarily in shadows. This creates areas for your eyes to move and rest throughout the photo.

Looking from the bottom right, my eye wants to follow the line of the log out to the next log, then stops once where the moss ends and turns to the log lit in full sunlight. It then flows to the next log (which is darker than the previous area, but lighter than the background) and then it follows that branch to the left to the next grouping of branches. It then turns back to the center and repeats the whole process. This transition from light to dark to light to dark to light to dark keeps the eye continuously moving throughout the scene. It’s a photo that your eyes just want to study.

Not only can you use physical lines and light to direct the eye. The same techniques can be implemented with color. If you look at this image you may notice the key (main) color in this is yellow-green. But what you might not see at first is there are subtle hues of red and blue in this image. This creates a triadic color harmony that groups pleasing colors next to each other. With varying levels of saturation, you eye automatically knows where to pay attention in the photograph. This color separation really makes the photo “pop” off the screen and adds great depth to the scene. Who ever knew a bundle of sticks could be so photogenic…Just for fun here's a black and white version of the photo. Enjoy!