The Line In Photography
Posted on 10. Feb, 2010 by Parks Thompson in Random
The first subject in photographic theory is, quite simply, line.
You may recall that in geometry a line is a one-dimensional series of points. Several lines are required to define a three-dimensional shape.
You could say that a line is an edge, a border between one thing and another. It can also be the connection between two things, like a clothesline tied between two trees. Straight, curved, bent or zig-zagged, it goes from one place to another.
Understanding lines is one of the primary requirements of photography. Virtually every photograph, of course, has lines in it. Some of these lines do more than merely divide or connect objects. They may also suggest moods and rhythm, create patterns, indicate directions and structure. The various qualities of the lines in a photograph, combine to produce an overall impression, called line.
Line is not passive. Instead it is a strong visual force that pulls the viewer’s eye around in a picture. Used well, it suggests movement, conveys impact and helps to focus attention on the key points of the composition. Used poorly, it distracts attention and weakens the composition’s effect. It may be simple, but it is also powerful. It is a bit like electricity. And like electricity, it must be controlled to be useful.
Line may be a subject in itself (as it will be in your first assignment), or it can play a supporting role for another subject. Lines may be connected in a larger pattern or isolated from each other, evenly distributed across the frame in an orderly manner, or scattered at random. A photograph may be dominated by just one line or packed with many. A line need not be “real” to have its effect. Objects of the same height (such as a row of fence posts) and the border between a building and the sky both produce an implied line that works just as well.
All of these possibilities boil down to three basic functions: pattern, direction and structure.
As pattern, line is often a photograph’s primary element. The lines themselves interact in some interesting way that is more important than any other elements within the frame. A photograph of buildings or cornfields or blades of grass is likely to emphasize pattern.
As direction, line helps the viewer’s eye travel around the picture. Visually, the lines say, “Go here. Look at that. Stop. Move on.” A photograph with many different kinds of objects especially needs strong directions to help the viewer understand it Without directing lines, the overall image can simply seem like chaos (which, of course, may be the photographer’s intention).
As structure, line divides a photograph into smaller areas, providing a skeleton to support the other elements and link them together. A strongly structured photograph will often seem to be several photographs in one. A photograph of several faces peeking out of windows is one example of this.
Line also conveys movement, or the lack of it. A rigid grid of straight lines tends to make an image appear static, flat, immobile. Lines that converge (that are closer together at one end than the other) or that shoot off toward the corners of the frame tend to suggest motion. Straight lines suggest the full-speed-ahead motion of a train, or the up-and-down of a piston. Curves tend to suggest movement that is more like dance.
Finally, different kinds of lines express different moods or emotions. Straight lines tend to seem rigid, harsh, intense. Curved lines and circles are more inviting, calm and soothing. Zig-zags seem busy, conveying excitement or confusion. Thick lines seem imposing. Thin ones seem delicate.
To get a sense of how these effects work, look at different kinds of lines and see what sounds and rhythms they suggest to you. What sort of musical instrument or tune reminds you of wavy lines? Zig-zags? Circles? Straight lines in a row? It may seem odd to think of listening to lines, but with a little experimentation you’ll probably discover that it comes very naturally. Different kinds of lines do have different characters.
The key point is that lines are expressive tools. As a photographer, you’ll need to learn to use them effectively.
Before you can use them, however, you have to find them. Where should you look? Well, just about anywhere. Here’s a short list: sidewalks, streets, telephone poles, buildings, bowls, wheels, trees, grass, rivers, forks and spoons, cracks, mountains, pencils, curtains, clothing, hands, arms, chairs, fields, tennis courts, bleachers and jungle-gyms.
Once you start noticing lines, you’ll find them everywhere. And that is exactly the point. It is because they are everywhere that lines are so fundamental to photography. They are the basic vocabulary of the photographic language.
It may seem odd to think of photography as a language. But that’s exactly what it is. Both a sentence and a photograph ought to have a subject. And just as a sentence may have verbs, adverbs, objectives and prepositions, a photograph may have movement, mood, perspective and relation. Understanding line is the first step toward learning to express yourself in the photographic language.
From The Photographic Eye: Learning to See with a Camera, Michael F. O’Brien & Norman Sibley; Davis Publications, Worcester, Massaschusetts; 1995.
