Composition critique - for Black Swans - life lessons

[RobScotcher]

Hi,

This is my first posting to this forum, so apologies first if I make some errors here.

Specifically I'm looking for critique on the overall composition of the triptych. The purpose of the grouping is to try an tell the story of the adult black swans teaching their cygnets how to be black swans:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2571/...98e86cbf_b.jpg



I am aware that I have perhaps broken some unwritten rules around the composition, i.e. no all the same aspect or demensions, but were is the fun in life if we can't break a few rules?

The three images were all taken at the same time and are of the same birds. The photos we shot with my Canon 20D and Canon 75-300mm image stabilised lens.

I look forward to you comments.

[windrider86]

You'll get far more responses if can post your image here. It makes it easier for even the laziest folks like me to view instead of flipping back and forth

[RobScotcher]

Unfortunately at 240 DPI, and at the lowest resolution for a JPEG file the image is still too large to post here.

[windrider86]

It looks like you are using Flickr. Flickr automatically resizes them for you

[RobScotcher]

Hopefully the larger jpeg from flickr will be more useful.

[Sterling]

Breaking rules is fine. But I don't think it works in this case. IMO, rather than indicating a "rule-breaker", the three different aspect ratios indicate, "didn't really know how to do it."

Although the subject is the same for all three photos, the very nature of a triptych is to pull all three shots into a unified "set." The first shot, which is the best of the three with the sunlight on the red bill, doesn't match the lighting in the other two shots. And by presenting each shot in a different, seemingly random, aspect, the cohesiveness of the "set" is not achieved.

I get what you were trying for here but I don't think you quite pulled it off. Good attempt though.

[peeperita]

hey, rob.....

i inserted your image for you so that folks can see it right off the bat......posting from flickr is really fairly easy.....this link to our faq's will give you a step by step on how to do it yourself next time......

peeper

[BBenson]

Yes, rules are meant to be broken, except perhaps the rules of physics. When breaking the rules, it helps to understand why. Triptychs are frequently more effective when they are visually balanced in presentation and visual weight. The different aspect ratios shifts the physical center of this one to the left and the visual balance to the right, with the light back on the left. Leaves my eye wondering where to go, with no obvious reason. The individual shots seem cropped as individual shots, not as members of a triptych. There's good potential here, just needs different editing

Bob