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Lens-Artist Challenge #305 – Two Rectangles

This week’s Lens-Artist Challenge is being hosted by Egídio of Through Brazilian Eyes. The challenge is simple but also eye-opening (no pun intended). Egídio asks us to share images that have two rectangles:

By two rectangles, I mean you have two dominant rectangular areas in your image. For many people, this is one of those compositional tools we use without thinking about it. These rectangles give balance, harmony, and unity to a composition. 

He offers some wonderful examples and explanations (essentially offering a mini-photography course), and I encourage you to visit his website.

While I knew I’d probably find rectangles galore in my archive, I decided to snap a few new photos just for this challenge.

First up, our backyard shed.

Cute, isn’t it? But consider the white trim that superimposes a square and a few rectangles over the rectangles of the gray boards. Consider too the rectangular steps that my husband made so we could keep our balance going in and out of the shed. The lines provide visual balance as well.

Next, consider two images of our fence, facing inward.

Image #1

Image #2

The first image is broken into thirds: the sky, the upper part of the fence, and the lower part, all of which are rectangles in the image. The second image omits the sky and while I like it because it provides a bit more of the fence, I prefer the first. When I’m taking photos outdoors, it’s rare when I would purposely omit the sky, even if the sky isn’t the subject of my photo.

Speaking of sky, the next photo is of the same area of our patio but at night. My subject was supposed to be a crescent moon, which of course, shows up as if it were a full moon. Still, I like the composition.

In his post, Egídio writes about Rabatment, a technique of putting a square inside a rectangle. I think I could argue that that is happening in the above photo, with the darker right-hand side of the fence and foliage providing a kind of frame.

Here’s a quirky image of rectangles as a frame for the subject of my photo: a Gulf Fritillary newly emerged from its chrysalis. This is the underside of the railing on our small side deck that leads out onto our patio. I really had to contort my body to get this photo.

And here’s a classic example of two (or more) rectangles in an image …

… on our favorite bike trail at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge.

Finally, a bit of fun. In April we went to Uvalde, Texas (via San Antonio) to see the Total Solar Eclipse. Our tour guide had reserved the Uvalde County Arena for our viewing. I wonder if I can get a sign like this for our front yard.

The arena itself offered very nice composition for photography.

Now, really finally, … can you see the rectangles?

Raji (ginger cat) and Wendy (Tortieco) on their windowsill perches.
Raji (ginger cat) and Wendy (Tortieco) on their windowsill perches.

If you would like to participate in this week’s challenge (and I hope you do), please note that pingbacks do not work with Egídio’s site. You will need to put your link in the comments on his post. Also, please use the “Lens-Artists” hashtag to it easier for others to find your post.

Last week, Ritva focused on backgrounds and how they affect our composition. That was so much fun and everyone had wonderful examples to share. Next week, Tina will host the next Lens-Artist challenge on Saturday, 12 noon (EDT in the USA). Stay tuned. Please see this page to learn more about the Lens-Artists Challenge and its history.

Lens-Artists team member Donna of Wind Kisses is taking a break from blogging for personal reasons. She will be very much missed but, hopefully be with us again before too long. We wish Donna and her family only the best, as our thoughts are with all of them.

Stay safe, happy, and well.

Marie A Bailey

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39 responses to “Lens-Artist Challenge #305 – Two Rectangles”

  3. Marie, I can see you were having fun with this challenge. It is contagious. I thoroughly enjoyed reading and seeing those beautiful images in your gallery. It’s hard to pick a favorite. The gray shed is cute and uses rectangles so cleverly. The steps define the top section for me. The fence images are great, too. I like the one with the sky even better than the other. The sky (negative space) serves as a great rectangle to focus on the fence. I’d love to bike down that trail you posted. It looks great. The closing image is also a great display of the rectangles to strengthen your composition. Your images are excellent from start to finish!

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  16. Marie, I really like the geometric focus. Very cool. So good to look at subjects from a different perspective, so to speak.

    Uvalde, wow. Did it seem as if everything was normal there or could you feel the tragedy in the air?

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