Although there were a surprising number of people out in the park around sunrise this morning, I managed to avoid them appearing in all the photos I took except one.
And although I usually prefer pictures without any people in, now I’ve looked closer at this one, I reckon that the figure actually adds something to the composition.
So I’ve been playing around with cropping the same image in different ways, just to see how doing so can change the effect. Note that I haven’t tried to do anything with the colours or sharpness, I’ve just cut the image differently using the same proportions in all the images except the post header.
If we focus right in on the figure and put her towards the right of the picture, it looks more as if she has just set out on her walk.
I can’t put her any further to the right because of where she was on the original photograph, so it’s much easier to have her walking out of the frame. We can keep her in the foreground and include a fair amount of the lightening sky.
Alternatively, we can crop lower on the sky and include a lot more of the dark muddy field. I think this second option makes her journey look a lot more ominous, as if she has already walked a long way and still has farther to go.
Of course, it’s also possible to crop the figure out completely. And then it’s up to the viewer to decide if she has already passed by or if she is yet to arrive on the scene.
Or perhaps there is no walker and the field will remain undisturbed, quietly exhaling mist as the sun rises.
don't confuse the narrator 