Imbalance (Balance task)

I found that showing imbalance in photographic composition is a bit more tricky than getting a balanced shot.

Choosing a composition that is not balanced can often result in a photograph that is full of tension and has an uncomfortable feel about it.  For this reason I wanted to pick the subject matter quite carefully.

Recently I have noticed that the spider population in my back garden seems to be growing at a fast rate and although I don't have a problem with them I am aware that people can often have a very real fear off them.

I though that I could play on this and attempt to portray them in a way that would give the very an uneasy feeling due to the shots being imbalanced.

With all of these shots I have used isolation to create imbalance within the composition.  This has been done by getting in close to the spiders, using a 100mm macro lens, so as there are no distracting elements within the frame.  

Also by using a wide aperture I was able to create a very shallow depth of field so as the background is completely blurred without any detail in it at all.  

With these shots the viewers eye tends to try and move from the spider in order to focus on something else but finds nothing so has to immediately return to the subject matter and it is this that creates tension in the images.

Balance

To get some shots using balance I headed of to Belfast docks, which now seems to called the Titanic Quarter, to photograph the Harland and Wolfe cranes which dominate the skyline of East Belfast.

This was also the first outing for my new Cannon 5d and 100mm lens so I was looking forward to seeing how it performed and also learning how to use it.







With this shot of one of the smaller cranes at the docks I have tried to used the shape of the clouds to add balance to the composition.

In this case the area of blue sky at top right of the photograph balances with the main subject matter as it is of similar size and shape.

To get this shot it was necessary to wait until the clouds moved into a position that made this composition possible.


















With this shot I have tried to use a similar technique as with the shot above.  Again the contrasting blue sky has been used to balance against the colour and shape of they yellow crane.

The shot has been composed in such a way that the the shape of the blue sky area creates an almost mirror image to the main subject matter.

This shot shows part of the newish Victoria Square complex in Belfast.

With this shot I wanted to balance the tower which is quite a weighty architectural feature with the sail like sun shade.

I think that this shot demonstrates how an object that can be perceived as heavy can be balanced with a lighter object that is closer to or in this case extends beyond the edge of the frame.

First task - Balance

The first task that I have been given in this course is to produce 6 images that explore that theme of balance within composition.  3 shots will be balanced and 3 are to show imbalance.

The use of balance in photography is a compositional tool which can be used to give a certain feeling within the image.  For example if the photographer wishes to portrait a scene as being harmonious or calm then the composition should show some balance, conversely, if the intention is to show an image containing some tension then the composition should be imbalanced.

Balance can be obtained using various techniques such as using symmetry, used of colour and by placing similar elements next to each other in images.

To create imbalance we can shift the view to isolate the subject matter and give the viewer nowhere else for their eye to travel to.