Real Triangles
On a recent visit to Blackwell (10th July) I took several photographs of the house exterior and the beautiful views in and from the garden. It was a bright, sunny day and the photographs were taken around midday.
There are several triangles in this view of Lake Windermere , taken from the terrace at Blackwell. The stone wall at the bottom of the frame edges the mown field; the left frame and lake form the other two sides.
In addition, my intention was to show the lake as a triangle, bounded by the far side of the lake and the slope of the mown field.
Beyond the lake, the shoreline and hill form a third triangle.
This view of the house shows an inverted triangle by perspective. As the two main walls meet at rightangles, the roofline of the left wall appears to descend from top left to the centre of the frame, causing the gable end of the right hand wall to form the second side of the triangle, which is completed by the top of the frame.
Implied triangles
Four plants in pots, with 2 baskets, form this triangular shape still life. There are plenty of flowers within the triangle for interest, but the placing of the plants on the trug gives width and height to the study.
Bryan Peterson (Learning to see Creatively) says that shape is the principal element of identification. Firstly, it is best defined when the subject is frontlit or backlit. Secondly, there should be a strong contrast between the shape and it's surroundings.
Triangles
I have been looking for triangles, both real and implied. Again I have found that, focusing on a new aspect of the course, I am noticing things I had not noticed before. As with Curves, I realise that triangles have formed a part of my photographs which have pleased me, but not thought about WHY they have had that effect.
The following three examples of my Granddaughter playing in the garden in response to my question "How many different triangle shapes can you make?"showed me how much more difficult it is to capture a posed choice, instead of just clicking away as she plays!
This shot fits with Peterson's point about contrast. Maddie's red polo shirt contrasts strongly with the green background. As for his first point, these shots were taken on a very dull day, as can be seen from the lack of shadows.
I was so busy concentrating on Maddie that I didn't notice that the garden shed is in the frame. It would have been a much better shot if I had asked her to move a few paces to her left!
Unfortunately, it began to rain heavily as I realised this and so could not repeat the shot.
I think Maddie had as much fun as I did!
An eye line
In this photograph, the figure to the right of the frame is nearest the camera and pulls the viewer into the frame. She has her back to the camera and is clearly looking down at the boat moored by the jetty. Although her eyes are not in the shot, the eye of the viewer is drawn down to the boat. The blue of her fleece top tones with the blue of the water and the distant hills.
Lines that point
Here, at the seafront at Heysham, the evening sun causes strong shadows from the railings to fall on the promenade. Although the vertical blue posts cause horizontal shadows, the dominant lines in the photograph are formed by the shadows of the horizontal railings. The railings themselves and the shadows form a sweep of lines which draw the eye to a central point on the horizon and the distant hills of The Lake District beyond.
