Just Hanging Out

[escape]

Sometimes, you need to take a break.

[Manfred M]

The image looks too "hot" with the bright sky overwhelming the rest of the subject matter.

I find the image lacks a main subject, so the viewer's eyes are bouncing around the image, without being able to settle anywhere.

[escape]

Thank you for your comment, Manfred, which I tend to agree with. But it leaves me curious to know if there are recognized images out there that lack a central subject and are considered exceptional photos. Or is it an unbreakable rule? It almost seems so. Are there any examples out there of this rule being broken successfully?

[Geoff F]

I keep coming back to this photo and wondering about how to improve it. The image has good clarity but the composition doesn't quite work. So I think I would crop closer at the bottom and lose the two lower birds. Maybe end up with a square crop?

[Manfred M]

I can't answer your question because you are correct that a strong image does not necessarily need a central subject, but in those cases the image needs strong visual flow to help the viewer navigate the scene. This scene has too many distracting elements to be strong.

I've certainly seen some abstract work that does this. Good ICM (intentional camera movement) often lacks a central subject, but I see very few ICM images that I consider strong.

I'm a firmly believe that "rules" don't work, so by definition all "rules" can (and need to be broken).

[billtils]

Yes the highlights are too hot, and yes, Geoff's suggested crop would also improve the image, but if you look at it as street photography for birders, it captures a moment and works quite well for me.

[billtils]

Just to keep the topic going, here's a shot I took several years ago - it's very far from my best work but perhaps it adds to the discussion in regard to composition of birds in a tree - nothing else worth a second look in it.

[escape]

Thank you all for providing so much insight.

The suggested crop did not work for me. I've noticed on the forum that sometimes a photographer finds it challenging to accept an agreed-upon crop indicated by others. I thought it was because of the photographer's personal connection with the image.
I'm unsure if the crop does much to improve the image. I like the tree's height, with the bird perched on top and the birds below forming a circle, both of which are lost in the crop. Perhaps "Outside the Circle" would have been a better title for the image.

Street photography for birds. That made me smile. I guess we will have to leave it at that.

[Round Tuit]

I agree with Manfred that it is possible to create strong images that do not have a central subject. One option, as Manfred suggested, is for the image to have strong visual flow.




The editors of "Photo News Magazine" picked that photo as a winner in a quaterly contest. I'll never know whether it placed first, second or third because I missed the deadline to supply them with a high resolution copy.
The photo works because of the strong wedge created by the sides of the canal which leads you through the important part of the image and keep your eyes from wandering to the right.


This next image works for me, yet it has no central subject nor does it have strong visual flow. What makes it work for me is the strong unifying theme of the severely limited palette coupled to the stark vertical lines of the trees in a sea of yellow.



Hope that helps.

P.S. Another example is the cropped version of Sharon's "Sailing" photo. It is a strong image that does not have a strong central subject.

[escape]

Thank you, Andre, for your comment. It was helpful and enjoyable.