Twelve Elements of Composition
Tips for Remarkable Photographs

Part 12-Leading Lines

Solitude

This is one of my favorite images. I was photographing a high school senior boy on his horse by the barn on his farm when I happened to look to my right and saw this horse perfectly set up! The only thing I can think of to make this image even better was to photograph this at a later time of day with the long shadows of evening. 

This photograph, called Solitude, combines so many elements in one image. The more elements in a photograph the more interesting the image becomes. 

We have already discussed the Rule of Thirds in lesson number two. The horse is standing in the left third of the image. 

It is also helpful that the horse is leading your attention into the photo with his head rather than directing your eye out of the image by looking to the left. We discussed this in lesson ten. 

The fence coming into the image and drawing your attention toward the horse is an example of leading lines. The fence takes your eye right to the horse. This is a strong compositional element you typically have to really search for. You may need to change your shooting position to make the most use of it. The fence would loose its leading line effect if I was to shoot straight into it. It would become flat and just part of the background. A leading line needs to run in at an angle. I love the fact that it ends at the horse and does not go clear to the left side of the image. I think it is stronger this way. 

We really have not discussed framing yet either. This is a good example of it with the tree above holding your eye in the image. As it fills about a third of the frame, it gives us a second rule of third element. 

The light color of the horse pops from the scenery without being too contrasty. There is plenty of detail in the highlights and shadows making this an ideal image for my wall decor line. 

About Barb 
Barb Gordon, of www.BarbGordonPhotoCoach.com, is a Master Photographer, Photographic Craftsman, and Certified Professional Photographer with the Professional Photographers of America (PPA) to which she has belonged since 1984. She is a nationally published and award winning photographer, entrepreneur, speaker, and author including being published in the prestigious PPA Loan Collection 2006, PPA Showcase 2003, twice named Iowa’s Top Ten Photographer of the Year, and 2010 Iowa’s Master Photographer of the Year.