Discussion

Formal elements are several main aspects of photography which are incorporated into peoples photographs, sometimes purposely and sometimes without even noticing. The formal elements are Line, Color, Pattern, Depth, Texture, Reflection, Form, Shape, Tone and Movement. The use of formal elements has a tendency to better photographs.

Formal elements can be found within most things. Starting with line, line is found in basically everything as it can be straight, wavy or curved, which can be found in anything ranging from the outline of a window to the outline of waves. Color can also be found in everything as it can be bright or dull which can range from the actual natural color of something or an effect, such as black as white which is still a color. The only color I wouldn't recognize is transparency. Color can be seen from the color of the ground to brightness of a blossoming flower. Shapes can be seen in many things however not everything, In my opinion obvious normal things which shape is shown are ball balls, doors, cushions, etc. Pattern is also shown in a lot of things and can also be described as a design, for example, the swirls on a tree trunk, the construction of slabs on a pavement and whether they are in alignment or not. Texture is also shown in most things, whether something looks soft or not, or whether is looks hard and perhaps sharp. Examples of texture could be the smoothness of a furnished side, the rough of a tree trunk.

Depth is different however and is mostly shown in length and height. This may sound simple but good depth is shown when it is pictured right and the right thing is pictured, for example, the depth of train track is illustrated well when the train track is empty, also when the lines are parallel and the scenery is deserted. Form is also different and perhaps a little harder to obtain as it takes the correct lighting to cast the shadowing to make something seem 3 dimensional. A perfect example is form the shadowing on your face with the sunlight hitting it lightly. Reflection is also more difficult as it takes a reflective substance, a good example of photographed reflection is the reflection of a tree in a puddle.

Tone is quite easy with editing as it is the dark and light shading of a photo therefore it is easy because you can show this simply by adding the black and white effect. Tone in pictures is often used with flowers and portraits.

Movement is the hardest to do, it is blurring and is done my altering the shutter speed on a camera. Movement is usually found in car pictures to show their speed.

Line:

Colour:

Depth: 

Pattern: 

Texture: 

 

Form: 

Tone: 

Movement: 

Reflection: 

Shape: