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Photography Composition: Lines
Implied Lines
Implied lines are not actual lines that you are used to seeing. They are instead implied in the picture area. They are made by the way objects are placed within the 4 walls of your photograph. Very often an actual object will create a line such as s tree, a railroad track or telephone wires.
Understanding lines is important because it can create responses from your photograph viewers. Often this happens on a sub conscious level but it's still important to know how to manipulate a photograph to attain the desired response.
Vertical Lines
Vertical lines run up and down. They help stimulate feelings of dignity, height, grandeur and strength. You can find vertical lines in buildings, trees, fences, people standing up etc. Look at the following picture and dig into your minds interpretation of the vertical lines in the following forest picture
Horizontal Lines
Denotes Repose, Calm, Tranquility and peacefulness, such as a person lying in the grass sleeping, flowers in a field, the flatness of a desert scene or lake. You can make your photograph illicit these feelings if you look for them in the picture area and use them in your photographs.
Diagonal Lines
This like gives the sensation of Force, Energy and Motion as seen in trees bent by the wind, a runner at the starting line or the slope of a mountain as it climbs into the sky. By knowing this you can create Force, Energy and Motion with your camera easily by tilting the camera to make objects appear to be in a diagonal line. A dignified church steeple when photographed at a slant will change to a forceful arrow pointing towards the sky and show motion.
Curved Lines
Here is a line of great beauty and charm and nothing gives a better example than a beautiful female form with all its lines and curves. Of course there are other examples: The curve in a river or a pathway through a flower garden.
S Curves
This line goes further than just a plain curved line. It is called the Line of Beauty. It is Elastic, Variable and combines Charm and Strength. It has Perfect Grace and Perfect Balance. You have seen this S Curve hundreds of times in drawings and paintings and other works of art.
Examples: the double curve of a river makes an S curve. A path, row of trees or bushes that curve one way and then the other way create the S curve. Look for this type of design and use it in your photos to add interest and beauty.
Leading Lines
The line that leads your eye in to the picture area easily like a road or fence, a shoreline or river, a row of trees or a pathway. A successful
Leading Line will lead your eye in to the picture and take it right to the Main Subject or Center of Interest
An UN-Successful Leading Line will take the eye in to the picture but will ZOOM the eye right OUT of the picture if there is no Stopper to hold the eye in the picture frame; such as a tree, house or other large object on the right hand side of the picture frame which will STOP the eye from going out of the picture. The
The best Leading Lines will start at the Lower Left area of the picture frame but not in the exact corner. Again, the eye likes to enter a picture frame at this point and the Leading Line will help it get in to the picture easily and swiftly.
Other photography articles of interest
Photography color
psychology
Photography color balance
and highlighting
Photography
composition
Photography composition: Line
Photography composition:
Shape