tree – Bryan Takes Pictures

I like this photo a lot, but it’s exactly the kind of photo that doesn’t draw attention at thumbnail size on the web. So here it is at postcard size. Click on it for monitor-size or wall-size.

Just a note about the “rules” of composition and when to break them blah blah blah. According to the rules, the four rule-of-thirds points (visualize the intersections on a tic-tac-toe board) are usually a good place to locate subjects within the frame. In this photo, I followed the rule of thirds with the foreground horizon and the mountains in the background. Horizontally, I located the tall foreground tree on a “thirds” line, but the true subject of the photo (the dead, brown tree) lies in no-mans land just off-center. The placement of the large tree on a thirds point leads the eye to an obvious and easily visible focal point which is just close enough to the dead, brown tree so the eye catches that next. This way, the viewer can think of the dead, brown tree as a discovery rather than having it shoved in his or her eye by placing it dead-center or on a thirds point. It’s subtle, but it can make the difference between a boring image and a compelling image. Of course, you may find this one boring anyway. In that case, you might find it more interesting when you find the hidden bigfoot. Keep looking…