Tree and boulders along a lakeshore, Yosemite NP, California

I’ve always loved the clean, crisp, pine-scented air in the Sierra high country. The thin air at those high elevations intensifies the temperature differences between sun and shade. You can be sweating in the sun one minute, then shivering in the shade the next. And the light has more contrast too. The thicker atmosphere at low elevations tends to be hazy, scattering light and softening contrast. The thinner air at high elevations has less of that scattering effect, making the edges between sun and shade sharper and more distinct. The light seems more intense, more vivid.

That intense light becomes even more striking when contrasted with clouds. Which means, of course, that I gravitate toward the high country when summertime monsoonal moisture pushes up from Mexico, spawning clouds, showers, and thunderstorms.

This summer has been pretty typical, with occasional periods of monsoonal moisture, and we’ve tried to take advantage of whatever weather has come this way. The accompanying photographs from the Yosemite high country were made over the course of the entire summer, and most of these images include clouds, or reflections of clouds, made during those stretches of showery weather (though a couple were made on sunny, cloudless days, and feature reflections of sunlit rocks).

In my last post I talked about balance in compositions. Balance is all about visual weight. Not the actual physical weight of an object in a photo, but how much that object draws the eye. If the visual weight is equal on the left and right sides of an image, and the top and bottom as well, then the photo will feel balanced.

Knowing what draws the viewer’s eye is essential to every aspect of composition – not just balance. You want to visually direct viewers to the places you’d like them to notice, and away from spots that aren’t as interesting or essential to what you’re trying to convey. And you can’t do that unless you know what’s likely to catch their attention.

As you look at the accompanying photos (or any photos), notice what draws your eye. Go ahead – I’ll wait.

Okay, what did you notice? I think there are three things that consistently draw the eye: bright areas, strong colors (especially warm colors), and contrast.

It should be no surprise that bright spots command attention, as our eyes are naturally drawn to bright areas in a photo. But dark spots can also be eye-catching – if they contrast with brighter surroundings. In the photograph at the top of this post, for example, the small tree is probably the most eye-catching thing in the frame, but it’s also the darkest thing in the photograph. It stands out because its dark shape contrasts with lighter surroundings.

In the first photo below, on the other hand, the most attention-grabbing area is undoubtedly the bright, colorful patch of clouds just left of center (and the reflections of those clouds). That’s the brightest part of the image, and also has strong, warm colors – a double whammy.

Of course photographs often have more than one visual focal point, and can include any of those things – an eye-catching bright spot, warm colors, or a dark object that contrasts with lighter surroundings. Some of the photographs here have all three.

Light and composition go together. Light determines where those bright spots are, or where you’ll find warm colors, or when dark objects will contrast with lighter surroundings. You can’t control the light in most outdoor situations, but you can try to anticipate it, and adapt to it.

And you can completely control how you compose a photograph. By understanding what draws the eye, you can use the light to your advantage, rather than fighting it. Find ways to arrange bright spots, warm colors, and contrasting dark areas so that viewers are drawn to things you want them to look at – things that help convey the message you want to convey – and away from areas that don’t contribute to that message. And try to keep the visual weight of those eye-catching spots in balance, both left-to-right and top-to-bottom.

— Michael Frye

Pond and mist at sunrise, Yosemite NP, California

Pond and reflections at sunrise, Yosemite NP, California

Rocks, grasses, and reflections in a high-country tarn, Yosemite NP, California

Creek running over polished granite slabs, Yosemite NP, California

Dappled light and granite domes, Yosemite NP, California

Double rainbow over an alpine lake, Yosemite NP, California

Clouds and reflections over an alpine lake, Yosemite NP, California

Pond and reflections in the Yosemite high country, Yosemite NP, California

Dome reflected in a pond at sunset, Yosemite NP, California

Related Posts: Finding Balance Among the Wildflowers; Light and Composition; The Range of Light

Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He lives near Yosemite National Park in California, but travels extensively to photograph natural landscapes in the American West and throughout the world.

Michael uses light, weather, and design to make photographs that capture the mood of the landscape, and convey the beauty, power, and mystery of nature. His work has received numerous awards, including the North American Nature Photography Association’s 2023 award for Fine Art in Nature Photography. Michael’s photographs have appeared in publications around the world, and he’s the author and/or principal photographer of several books, including Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters, and The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite.

Michael loves to share his knowledge of photography through articles, books, workshops, online courses, and his blog. He’s taught over 200 workshops focused on landscape photography, night photography, digital image processing, and printing.