The next two photos don’t have much in common. Perhaps the basic theme of nature? Balázs Turay still has opinions about them, though…
Plant macro
I might say that anyone with a macro lens or a digital camera with macro capabilities can make such a picture.. But I wouldn’t say it as the author managed to split the field of the picture very harmoniously with the picture elements. A beautiful balance is created by the seemingly unbalancing asymmetry which moves one of the remarkable elements from the center to the left. This is compensated by the smaller, darkest part of the photo on the left, as if supporting the lighter areas occupying the right side and center. The effect is strengthened by the loss of focus in the dark parts and the perfect details in the light ones.
To sum it up, it can be easily observed that an asymmetric placement, along with the thoughtful choice of tones, forms, and effects of sharpness and focus, can result in a perfect composition. To keep in mind: when consciously composing a picture, one doesn’t need to place the main theme exactly in the middle!
A forest esplanade
Is this one picture or two? If I talked to the author, I’d surely say he brought me pleasure with this view! And I’d also mention that I can see how much he struggled to decide and still could not reach a decision about what to keep more of: grass or tree.
For I say this is not one picture but two. It seems everything is OK with it, but I have the feeling that the part under the horizon can be easily separated from the one above. I can imagine that you could create more tension when keeping just something from the path, with less grass. Or, the other way around, showing only the trees, with just a bit from the walk.
What is it that still “saves” the picture? Primarily that the whole of it has a consistent tone, which makes the problem less visible and emphatic. The upper closure looks really nice with the foliage and the branch running out to the right corner. The whole photo radiates tranquility and invites for a walk. Let’s go out into the forest, and try more variations of this composition!
Balázs Turay
photographer
