Eye Catching Elements That Improve Your PhotosThere are elements you can incorporate in your photograph when composing your subject that will draw the viewer eye in and add interest to the subject. Follow these simple guidelines and the quality of your pictures will improve dramatically. Adding them can make a drab photo come alive. When you see a picture you like, you know you like it, but may not know exactly what it is about the picture that really appeals to you at first glance. Chances are the picture incorporates one or more of these elements. Once you recognize these elements you can incorporate them in your own photos to improve them vastly. These elements are: Framing, Reflections, Leading Lines, Pattern, Shadow, S-curve, Back lighting, Silhouette, and Mood evoking There are plenty of good sources for seeing examples of photographs with these elements in them. Let’s discuss this from the angle that you are on a photo road trip. There is a twofold bonus in it for the photographer here. Your sources…the local souvenir shop of the destination you have selected and the postcard rack in the motel lobby where you might be staying. I say twofold bonus because these are also good sources for additional places you may not be familiar with. Of course you did your pre-trip homework…didn’t you? You can never cover it all even with the most thorough of research. There’s nothing like being there for true exposure(pun intended). You might even get an idea for a shot from looking at the postcards. I’m not talking about being a copycat. Yes, we all like to get the classic photo of a well known icon, but once you have that try to be creative and come up with your own imaginative shot. Enough with the idle chatter, let’s get down to the brass tacks. Framing Most of us have seen the tropical beach scenic where the palm tree leaves hang over the shore often casting a shadow on the sand with the ocean in the background. This is classic photo framing. The beach is the main subject, but the palm leaves frame the subject. In nature trees are often found in abundance and consequently are commonly used for framing subjects. In the absence of trees, like in the desert, shrubs and cactus can be employed to fit the bill. See how I have incorporated tree framing in the photo of the covered bridge.
Reflections Reflections add spice to a photo. Natural reflections can be found on a lake, or other body of water, and monument reflection pools are a typical example. Checkout my reflection shot of Marquette Harbor Light.
Look for reflections in other objects like the shiny surfaces of chrome bumpers, building windows, and mirrors. Sometimes a good rain can produce reflections in the form of puddles that are not ordinarily there. If your subject is near an ocean environment watch for reflections that may have been produced by tides and wave action. Often if wave activity is sufficient water can collect in pockets of eroded rock formations for instance, far from where a typical high tide might deposit some. Leading Lines and the S-curve Leading lines draw the viewer’s eye into the picture. Leading lines can be the main subject, but typically they lead to the main subject. Common leading lines include fences, stairways, walkways, aisles, nature trails, highways, and piers. Note how the elevated walkway leads right up to the Marshall Point Lighthouse.
The classic S-curve is usually seen on the likes of road atlas covers in the form of a highway snaking along through a scenic landscape. Find them in many of the common leading lines mentioned above including gravel roads. Pattern Pattern is another element that is pleasing to the eye. Natural patterns in nature include sand ripples, zebra stripes, and clouds and those are just a few examples. As you can see from the examples given pattern doesn’t have to be geometric or have order. Common man-made patterns include lines of telephone poles, fences, and farm crop rows. These double as leading lines as well. Shadow Shadow, especially the long shadows found during early morning and late evening improve a photo by adding an artistic touch. Shadows incidentally also add definition and depth to sand dunes which you won’t find in the direct overhead light of mid-afternoon. The burned trees in this Yellowstone picture illustrate the visual effect of shadow well. Note that this photo has at least three elements – shadow, leading lines, and pattern.
I included silhouettes and back lighting together since they are related. A silhouette is really back lighting at its extreme. Silhouettes are basically a representation of a subject as an outline where the subject is solid and usually black. It can be achieved to varying degrees by underexposing a subject with the sunlight directly behind the subject. Two stops under is a good start. Take a look at the saguaro cactus photo for an example of this element.
A typical back lighting shot is one where you see rays of sunlight streaming through trees and casting tree shadows on the forest floor. Another example is when the sun is obscured behind a cloud and the light radiates out from behind. This also leaves that silver lining look around the cloud edge. Shooting the underside of leaves with the sun behind achieves good back lighting effect and if for instance an insect is on the top side of a leaf you’ll note that the insect appears as a silhouette. Mood Evoking Elements Mood evoking elements are elements in a photo that arouse a particular mood in the viewer. These elements may even give the viewer, for instance, looking at a scenic landscape that they would like to be there. Clouds can give a mellow mood. Waterfalls can give a calming feel to a viewer. Fog and mist can evoke an eerie mood. Colors evoke moods as well. Shades of blue give a sense of coolness like you see in snow and ice whereas reds imply warmth or even hot temperatures, generally, but not always. The light of early morning and late evening add mood to a photo as well. For instance, the pinks, oranges, and reds of sunrise or sunset are a massive display of eye candy. See the sunset shot of a highway bridge in Baytown, Texas.
Sometimes these elements may not exist in a scene at a particular time of day, but they can be found by returning at another time of day, morning or evening, before or after a rain, or even in a different season. These elements can also be combined to incorporate more than one in the same photo. Try using them the next time you go on a photo shoot for improved images that will dazzle your friends. No more boring vacation photos.
authored by Lon Britton
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Natural and man-made arches, rock formations, stairways, bridges, and statues are other objects that can be used to frame subjects just to name a few.
Note how the reflection enhances the photo. Cover the reflection with your hand and compare the before and after view to see if you don’t agree that the reflection “makes” the photo. 
The S-curve is another type of leading line, however it is S-shaped much like the Yellow Brick Road that Dorothy and her three cohorts took on the way to see the Wizard. The ole brick highway actually had many S-shaped curves as I recall. 
One caveat I feel should be mentioned in dealing with silhouettes and back lighting even though I think most folks are aware of is to never stare at the sun. Use your subject to shield your eyes from the direct sun.
Lightning and ominous stormy clouds in a photo can also evoke moods of foreboding.
