Designing the Picture Space

In a photograph, there are several ways dominance can be portrayed. Following rules such as "red is more attractive than yellow; large draws more attention than small; difference draws more attention than conformity; jagged lines are more striking than curved ones; diagonal lines are more attractive than vertical ones; sharpness is more attractive than blur; and light is more important than dark," dominance can be brought into different sections of a photograph.

I personally like macro photography because it allows an individual to get a closer look at something that they would usually just walk right passes and never think twice about it ever again. In this photograph, there are several of those "rules of dominance" playing a factor. There are multiple diagonal lines that keep the viewers eyes moving throughout the photograph. The small pine cones offer jagged lines that are more striking than curved ones, such as the curving tree limb. The biggest dominance factor playing a role in this photograph is the sharpness of the tree limb and pine cone versus the blurred out background. The background in this photograph is not beautiful whatsoever, the only role it plays is to draw the attention of the viewer more towards the tree limb and pine cone.

In class, I learned that males tend to come in from the photograph from the bottom right side of the photo while women tend to come in from the bottom left of the photograph. Both sides have a set of diagonal lines that lead the viewer to the center of the photograph, however the bigger tree limb from the bottom left does a better job leading to the subject than the smaller spider webs.

When I was taking this photograph, none of the previously said items were thought about. Only after I took the photo and learned about the material in class did I go back through my photographs and try to critique my work.