Exercise: Implied Lines

The brief required me to:

1. look at the two photographs, the bullfighting scene and Threshing Corn in Sicily, and find the implied lines, sketching them for the purpose of the learning log;
2. perform the same analysis on three of my own photographs; and
3. take two photographs where the following kinds of implied line lead the eye:

• an eye-line; and
• the extension of line or lines to a point.

1.  Text photographs

Bullfight

In the Bullfight scene above the implied lines converge into the centre of the photograph.  There are two lines directly associated with the bull's movement, the eye-line of the matador and the lines constructed through the "sticks" supporting the red "flag".  I have also made use of the curved line traced in the sand to extend into the "stick" held in the matador's left hand.  This adds strongly into the dynamics of the photograph, bringing the focus into the centre.



Gottard Schuh, Threshing Corn in Sicily

The implied lines in Schuh's photograph are primarily eye-lines.  I have constructed these on the photograph above.  The most dynamic of these are the ones from the two horses, which, combined with the angle of their bodies provide a strong perception of their movement in a curve.  This is added to by the feeling that the farm-worker  is at the pivot of this curved movement and this is addressed through his eye-lines leading to the horses' hooves.

The main eye-lines of the lead horse and the farm-worker create a triangle adding a further design element to the photograph, bringing order and structure.

2.  Analysis of own photographs




Wood carver:  ISO 3200 70mm f16 1/30

This photograph of a wood carver in Thailand is a straightforward image.  The eye-line clearly takes us tothe point of what he is doing - carving intricate patterns and sculptures in a block of wood.  The lines of his hands and the motion of his hammer provide further accent as shown by the arrows.  There is also a triangular structure created with the lines of his arm, torso and eye-line.

I was shooting indoors, so had a high ISO setting, but here I also wanted to show some movement if possible, so I used a fairly slow shutter speed.  The downside of this is that the f-stop is higher than I would have wanted, bringing a distracting background more into focus.




Group photo:  ISO 200 300mm f6.3 1/1000

This photo is all about eye-lines.  The girl at the front of the row had taken a group photo from that position.  With the exception of the lady on the right, all the eyelines lead to the camera providing , as well a small inverted triangle of two ladies and the man in the group.  This ensures that the point of interest through these implied lines is the camera.  All of this is further accentuated by the close grouping and the way the hands, arms and shoulders create further lines in the same direction.

The photograph was a candid "street" photo, so I took advantage of the structure as it happened - The aperture was one stop in from fully open - this also ensured I did not suffer from camera shake at this point. 



Black and Orange:  ISO 500  28mm  f3.5  1/60

Another straightforward image.  The Buddha's eyes leading to the orange flowers.  I liked the monochrome look here and kept my aperture wide open as I wanted the accent on the flowers, throwing the Buddha slightly out of focus.  The closeness of the wide-angle lens at this point further brought the flowers to the fore and pushed the Buddha into the background.  The main connection being established through the eye-line.

3.  Newly taken Photographs

Battle:  ISO 200 400mm f5.6  1/1600

 The photograph of the two lady re-enactors at a medieval fair at Castle Hedingham has the eye-lines leading to a point out of frame. This is also supported by their stance.

I was using the lens at its widest aperture as I was keen to throw the distracting background out of focus and also provide a fast shutter speed to freeze the action and, in this case, I also wanted to have no camera shake.

Walled garden:  ISO 200 24mm  f16  1/30

Taken at Cressing Temple, the lines initially established by the bench and the brick flower border on the right are continued into the distance to the tree growing above the wall.

The implied lines are accentuated by using the wide angle lens and, as I wanted to ensure sharpness throughout, I used f16 as my aperture, knowing that this would give me a good DOF.


Exercise: Curves

The brief for this exercise is to take 4 photographs which use curves to emphasise movement and direction.  Curves are another form of line and these can take in circles.  Where circles are found, these are more used in the form of a cone where attention is drawn by using a conical perspective.  The photographs below illustrate curves used as a design element.


Benches:  ISO 400 32mm f10 1/80

The benches I found in Colchester town centre - a brilliant design feature by the town planners for a change!  I found that these were visually very powerful, the curve grabbing you and projecting you off the end!  I used a wider angle here to exaggerate the curve and the flow which was repeated by several such benches being lined up along the pavement. 


Castle Hedingham:  ISO 400 190mm f16 1/250

 Here, in a source of much inspiration for me, I found the grass in the moat area, following the line of the moat and directing the viewer to the bridge at the end.  I used a longer focal length to compress the scene sufficiently to give greater value to the bridge and in particular its arches, which themselves suggested circles, thereby giving greater depth into the photograph.



Mansion door:  ISO 200 300mm f8 1/320

In this shot I am experimenting with using a circle to draw the eye to the central object which is the door to the mansion in the grounds at Castle Hedingham.  I am using the trees and shrubs to form a circular window through which the door is being viewed.

Staircase:  ISO 800 16mm f3.2 1/30

Circular staircases are a natural curve which draws the viewer along and, as in this case, up the stairs.  I have, here exaggerated the curves by using the 16mm end of my wide angle lens.  There is strong movement and direction up the stairs taking the viewer to the top left.

Exercise: Panning with different shutter speeds

This time the purpose of the exercise was to show movement by using a technique called panning. The objective of this technique is to shoot at a low enough shutter speed is to blur the background, whilst keeping the subject in focus and sharp. This is a technique which can be used for most moving subjects, however there does come a point where the shutter speed is so slow, that it proves impossible to maintain a sharp image of the subject.

I shall later show photographs taken at other times of different subjects which also demonstrate panning and non-panning techniques.


1. I started the panning exercise at 1/1000th as I felt that for this subject faster shutter speeds would always freeze the movement and would not add value. Here, using ISO 1600, to get a fast enough shutter speed, all movement is frozen. To the viewer the car appears static and could be parked in that road.



1. 1/1000th


2. At 1/640th, some slight movement becomes discernible, particularly in the wheels as they have a different movement to that followed by the panning motion. Because there is this slight suggestion of movement, there is a question in the viewers' mind as to whether the car is static or parked.



2. 1/640th


3. In the photograph to the right, the car's wheels are showing definite movement and there is some perceptible movement in the background. This is giving that impression of movement, but only on close inspection. The viewer still cannot see real movement.

3. 1/400

4. At 1/250th there is definite blurring of the background due to the panning motion, however, to me this is still insufficient to show movement as a whole. Again, the wheels are nicely blurred, while the car remains sharp.

4. 1/250th

5. Panning at a shutter speed of 1/160th provides good blurring of the background and provides the viewer with a good impression of movement, though the speed of the car is not particularly well conveyed.




5. 1/160th

6. At last, at 1/100th, there is both a sensation of both movement and speed. A balance has been achieved between the shutter speed and the panning motion which is responsible for blurring the background. Whilst this is a significant improvement on all the preceding photographs, to me this is still insufficient.

6. 1/100th

7. At 1/60th, this is what I am looking for. The background is nicely blurred and a real impression of speed is conveyed to the viewer.

7. 1/60th

8. There is a real impression of movement and speed in this shot taken at 1/40th. Oh dear......the driver is talking on his hand-held mobile!! A reasonably sharp mage is maintained giving good detail due to the panning techniques.

8. 1/40th

9. This is probably my favourite in the sequence. Good image sharpness through panning, combined with a low enough shutter speed to give that all important impression of movement and speed. The buckled bodywork at the rear of the car really makes the car stand out.

9. 1/25th

10. Now, I am moving into the more difficult zone of panning - here there is a great sense of movement and speed. Does it matter that the car is not wholly sharp - probably not. This all depends on the subject matter and what the photographer is trying to convey to the viewer. Curiously, the front of the car is much sharper than the rear. I can only think that, since I am panning in an arc, then here we have a shutter speed which is just slow enough to capture the differential between front and back caused by the relative different panning speeds.

10. 1/15th

11. To me this is a pleasing shot which demonstrates movement through panning. The car is not as sharp as it could be, but I feel this does not detract from the overall shot.

11. 1/10th

12. Here we are tending somewhat more towards the abstract. It is certainly more difficult to pan successfully, however there is a real feeling of movement. To the right of the shot, I caught some bushes between the car and the camera - these are totally blurred and add, through their "streaks" to the overall impression of speed.

12. 1/6th

An interesting exercise which could be extended to all manner of subjects. To me, panning is an essential ingredient where I am trying to convey movement and speed. However, I will always need to ask myself whether the subject will lend itself better to the opposite technique of showing movement through the use of shutter speed alone.