I took both of these recently using my phone whilst out and about. Both appeal to me because of their composition. I can’t say that I composed particularly consciously or with great intention apart from to react to what I saw as a pleasing image, but nevertheless without additional cropping the resulting compositions are very pleasing to my eye and help make both pictures along with their colour pallette.

Taking the first image, the sweep of the stairs defines a perfect diagonal from bottom left to top right and I love the fact that the surround is not broken in that top right-hand corner, nor the stairs in bottom left, and frame the image. The light is lovely, which is what drew me to take the picture with strong contrast of light and shadow around the image and that beautiful red colour dominating. For being such a simple, even boring subject, I currently have good feelings for this image.

The second image is quite different in its warmth, subject and content. A more detailed and complicated or full image, I nevertheless find the composition shines through.

The sweep of the gutter down the middle of the street, lit by the sunshine reflecting off the wet surface, really makes it for me, and the people in the image are a perfect place for the eye to rest, completing the image beautifully. The range of colours adds real interest and I again like the fullness of the picture with little unused, or useless space. Even the rectangular black manhole cover adds to the composition, giving a striking graphic shape front and centre in the image. This is gently mirrored by a similar square shape bottom left whose cover is attempting to blend in with the rest of the paving. These shapes are also reflected throughout the image in the shuttered windows, signs, tables and chairs. The dynamic of the image is generated by the flow of the roof and foot of the buildings on the left towards the centre right of the image, with the dark roof line on the right and that sweeping arc of the gutter constraining the visual on the right. The separation and action clearly evident in the postures of the people at the confluence of these flow lines, really completes the image for me.

Interesting that perhaps it’s possible to see more than we realise at the time and react to it in creating an image.