Images with lots of dark elements can appear mysterious, nostalgic or calm. Bright photos, on the other hand, radiate joy of life and convey a good mood. The same applies to the difference between black and white and color. Without color, a photo appears calm, but with color it is enlivened.
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How you approach the design depends on what you want to achieve with the photo and what mood suits the scene you capture. This week's images show different approaches taken by our gallery photographers.
In his picture Bicycle Richard Stinauer (RicSti) used a dark editing approach. He writes to us: “During a (…) walk through Munich, I recently took a photo of 14 identical rental bikes parked in a row. In contrast, the look of the old racing bike and the unusual parking location had an effect on me like a troubleshooting picture. With the dark 'moody look' I tried to focus on the wheel and the door handle.”
Gallery photographer Nils Schulte-Jokiel (NilsSch) also used the photo London street predominantly dark elements caused by the backlight. He wrote: “I took the opportunity to take the photo as the sun drove away the London rain. Reflections on the street form an exciting design element and the harsh light turned people into silhouettes. This was the 'stage' to which I came There was still one element missing: The idea was to 'frame' the numerous people walking past with an element. To do this, for example, you can take photos through the legs of people walking very close by or, as in this case, with a bit of luck (…) through the spokes of one Motorcycle. It is also important to me to include as few disturbing elements as possible in the picture by choosing the perspective.”
The photo was taken during a city trip to Dresden Dresden old town by Stephan Glasses. He relies on dark image elements, which are primarily caused by vignetting. The viewer's gaze is drawn to the center and the transition between the two buildings is highlighted. In addition, there is a strong contrast to the light background, which further enhances the focus. Editing in black and white also makes the light and dark elements stand out better.
A lot of color characterizes the picture Elbe bridge in the sunset by Jens Kerber (SonyAlpha380). The gradient between the light foreground and the colored background guides the eye beautifully through the shot and gives it a calm atmosphere. Kerber describes how his picture was taken: “On February 23rd, 2024 (…) there was a beautiful sunset and so we went straight to the Elbe. Once there, I had to make my way through a thick layer of mud due to the recently receded floodwaters to the river Fight the groyne. Tripod and camera set up and then we started, with the sunset becoming ever redder. I tried out a few settings in terms of exposure and time and that's how I came up with this beautiful photo. The natural spectacle with the extreme red color in the sky and the Reflection in the water was over within ten minutes.”
Tino Weigelt (Lightpix84) sets in his recording Crested Tit, both in the background and in the bird itself, there are many bright and strong colors that enliven the picture. “A week before, I was out in the forest with my daughter and the bikes when I saw from a distance that there were lots of birds cavorting around a seat. Someone had set up a small feeding station here,” remembers the photographer. “A week later the weather was right, so I rode my bike and my (…) equipment to the place. It took a while for the birds to get used to me, but from then on the small feeding station was well attended. I set the camera to continuous fire with the telephoto lens and, to my surprise, the first bird I caught was the crested tit. I waited another hour, but the crested tit no longer appeared.”
Also the picture Beach vacation by gallery photographer vanthom is characterized by many strong colors and bright exposure. The highlight of this shot, however, is the provocative and cheeky idea of placing the woman's swimsuit on a clothesline between her feet in order to block the viewer's view. A creative approach that plays well with provocative elements.
Pigeons in flight by Wolfgang Görgen shows birds against a white background. The few points on which the eye can orientate make the picture unusual. The large, empty area in the middle seems out of place. Despite this, or perhaps precisely because of this, we take a closer look. Because not every photo has to follow the same pattern; breaking the rules makes some photos interesting.
You can find all of the “Pictures of the Day” from the past week in our photo gallery:
(Image: RicSti)
(cbr)