Tuesday, May 29


In the hay loft.

3 comments:

  1. You take such beautiful photos, Heather. I'm going to bend your ear a bit. OK?
    I have to comment on your creative use of lines, diagonal lines. Especially in B & W images, lines are the most fundamental elements in photography, coupled, of course with tones [and colours]. B & W forces us to see lines and tones only - colour can sometimes be too overwhelming, so seductive that we miss the image in fact. All we really have in photography is the line. Here you use light itself to produce lines and contrasting tones. You know where to place the diagonal lines in the frame[where they leave and enter and where they intersect each other], lines that add energy, a dynamic momentum to the image. Because we read from left to right, the powerful diagonals running from bottom left to top right [called the secondary diagonal]lead my eye across the frame upward, forcing my eye to explore the subject. The lines you've used exert a pull on the eye and the motion can be pleasing as well as provocative. Eventually, pattern recognition kicks in and we "see" the subject, perhaps even in a new way. Your interesting and complex use of light also generates the contrast in tones, bringing both depth and texture to the photo. Renaissance painters discovered this effect of contrasting tones, calling it chiaroscuro, literally "light/dark". The entire frame you've selected here is divided by tones in contrast, shadows giving life to the "painting".
    We ask ourselves at some level, "What do the lines make us feel about the image?" "What is the effect of the tonal contrast?" It is quite impossible to just glance at this photo. Again, I applaud your artwork. The Italian art patrons of the 14th and 15th century would have loved you, Heather. A Scot in Italy! Yes, I like that

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    Replies
    1. Wow. Did you used to be a teacher? I couldn't tell ;)

      Thanks for your insights. Your comments are quite ego-boosting.

      I am really just happy to know you enjoy my images and it's also enjoyable for me to look at them through the eyes of someone else.

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    2. It's a pleasure to be another set of eyes. Me, a teacher? No way!
      As for that ego-boosting effect, I just deconstruct your images and tell you what I've discovered. Remember, you create the beauty with a camera. I merely look hard at it all and, yes, it's a joy for me.

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