22 Balance in a Photo
You have seen that every image has an underlying abstract structure that determines its pictorial composition. There are infinite possibilities for creating such a structure, but among all these possibilities one essential thing should not be forgotten: The structure must be balanced; it should not appear to tip over to one side.
Let’s look at the photo in figure 22–1: A window cleaner swings high over Frankfurt in his suspended balcony. The window cleaner’s box dominates the left side of the picture and there is no counterweight on the right but the photo does not become unbalanced. The reason is that we read images from left to right. Your eye enters the photo on the right side of the suspended balcony, looks briefly at ...
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