The two swan pictures use the detail in the background of reeds to contrast with the soft form of the bird, while the feather relies on the detail of it's delicate structure contrasting with the coarser out of focus background.
The compositions are a little conventional, leaning towards the dreaded 'rule of third' for the placing of the main point of interest. However the reliance on fine detail, and being viewed large (I'm sure they'd work better at A3 than A4) makes me wonder if the increasing viewing of images on screens, with their poor resolution and generally small size, is dumbing down photograph making. If pictures are only to be viewed small then there is no need to look for detail. Bold, simplistic, compositions will work better.
Looking again at the large prints in the Richard Mosse exhibition at the Open Eye Gallery last week also made me think about this aspect of photography. Large format cameras and mural sized prints need detail in a way that large paintings don't. I found myself viewing the prints from as far back as I could to get the overall effect, then walking closer to see what the details were. The devil is in the detail, and some of the small elements were only revealed by close inspection.
This second viewing also made me rethink the use of infra red film. I had thought it an affectation, but it brought a different kind of contrast to some of the pictures. A contrast that aided the compositions which wouldn't have been apparent if rendered conventionally. It didn't seem to apply to every picture. In some it did seem like a gimmick. But where it was successful it certainly made for a different way of looking.
As an aside, all three of today's pictures were taken using a macro lens. Just because a lens can focus close doesn't mean it can't focus far!
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