Play with perspective to influence lines
Monday 21 October 2024, 16:32 by Nando Harmsen | 2,317 views | 7 commentsThis article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.
Lines are extremely important for a good composition. They guide your eye through the photo and towards a subject. Did you know you can manipulate the direction of lines? It is easier than you think.
When creating a composition, it is always a good idea to look for lines. You find them almost everywhere, and they come in different forms. There are horizontal lines and vertical lines. Curves are also very beautiful to use, both the C-curve and the S-curve.
Of course, there are diagonals. These have a very strong effect on direction or movement in a photo. They are therefore useful for leading your attention towards a subject. Choose the diagonal carefully.
You may think that a line cannot be changed, or can hardly be changed. However, this is easy, at least in most situations. You just need to take the time to look at it. A diagonal can run upwards or downwards. Or even change into a horizontal or vertical line.
I have a good example of a wall in the bastide village of Cordes-sur-Ciel in France. This little wall leads towards the door with a lantern. The way this wall runs through the photo depends on your viewpoint.
Choose your viewpoint carefully. If you stand on the left, the wall runs as a downward diagonal. If you stand on the right, it becomes an upward diagonal. How far to the left or right you stand determines the angle of the diagonal line. If you stand directly in front of it, the wall is a vertical line.
Which position you choose depends on your personal preference and what you want to say with the photo. It also determines what you show in the background or of the surroundings. Take your time and find out what works best for you.
In this case, I think the wall as a vertical line is the wrong choice. It creates a barrier, making it unpleasant to look through the photo. Choosing the upward or downward diagonal is a matter of taste and depends on what you want to say with the photo.
Which diagonal do you think works best in this photo? Let us know in a comment below this post.
About the author
Nando Harmsen has been photographing for more than 40 years. He specialises in wedding photography and landscape photography. Nando also gives talks, workshops, masterclasses and photo trips, and regularly reviews new and interesting equipment.
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7 comments
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J.Z. Spuls-Veld wrote on Tuesday 22 October 2024 at 19:41 | replyI would choose position 4: The upward line then points nicely toward the lantern, an important part of the photo..
Translated from Dutch. -
Ria wrote on Tuesday 22 October 2024 at 23:27 | replyI like the far left and right positions best
Translated from Dutch. -
Dick de Roos wrote on Wednesday 23 October 2024 at 10:22 | replyI like the first photo best, also because the lantern stands out best here.
Translated from Dutch.
If it’s just about a beautiful image (so not necessarily depicting reality) you could consider flipping the photo horizontally. That gives us Westerners the most pleasant viewing direction. -
Nando
wrote on Wednesday 23 October 2024 at 10:31
| reply
The reading direction cannot be decisive for a good composition. Because that would mean that what is a good composition for us 'Westerners' is not good for the 'Easterners'. That would be strange, don't you think?
Translated from Dutch.
Have you ever mirrored the photo? I don't find the photo pleasant to look at then.
So instead of us Westerners, you would be better off saying: "I find it the most pleasant viewing direction then". It's something personal. -
Ed wrote on Wednesday 23 October 2024 at 13:48 | replyPersonally, I would go for the second photo. In the first one, the door with the wall around it seems to be leaning back a tiny bit. You are also missing a little piece of the right post in the foreground. In the second photo, everything looks complete with a good and calm view of the door with lamp.
Translated from Dutch. -
Donald Willemsen wrote on Wednesday 23 October 2024 at 14:18 | replyPhoto 4 appeals to me the most. That has to do, among other things, with the viewing direction. Indeed, that is the most usual for us 'Westerners'. And Nando, that has to do not only with the usual 'reading direction' but also with the usual 'writing direction'. In Arabic script, people read from right to left and that also applies to writing. The Chinese and Japanese do it differently again. They write not only from right to left but also from top to bottom.
Translated from Dutch.
That way, everyone will look at a photo differently depending on the way they have learned or are used to doing so.
The rest is personal taste/preference.
I would say: Put it to the test and publish a beautiful photo where the lines/diagonals run from left to right. Look at the number of likes you get. Publish a similar photo a week later, but this time with lines/diagonals running from right to left and keep track again of how many likes that produces.
I expect that the first photo will get more likes than the second.
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