even better than the real thing

I went to the theatre tonight. My parents have season tickets to a local actors studio and, prevented from attending themselves, passed the tickets on to me. What struck me about the play wasn't necessarily the singing (solid), the acting (great), the make-up (phenomenal Chelsey, just terrific), or even the technical aspects of the production (minimalist). If you've seen The Fantasticks, you will know that the entire play takes place on a platform, with comically pedestrian props and sets and a small cast. Yet it was one of the most enthralling shows I have ever seen.

The play breaks many of the classically-acknowledged rules of theatre; the narrator interacts with all of the other characters, the entire cast breaks the fourth wall regularly, and the most compelling character doesn't utter a sound throughout the entire production. And I loved it. The story-line is rather commonplace, but the unconventional presentation transforms it into something spectacular.

Watching this play was like watching a two-hour long metaphor for my artistic journey. You see, the first thing you learn as a budding photographer is the Rule of Thirds. If you've never heard it, the rule is this: a picture can be divided up into 9 pieces by two horizontal lines and two vertical lines, and by placing objects in the frame along these lines you can create tension and energy, resulting in a more interesting image.


I like this picture because it playfully skews this rule. The dock runs straight along the top horizontal line, while its shadow generally follows the bottom horizontal line. You can also divide the picture in thirds by creating a V from the bottom right hand corner of the frame by following the break between water and beach for one arm, and the upper line of the dock shadow for the other. Finally, I like the contrast of three major colours in the blue water, the teal dock and the grayish-brown beach.

The Rule is followed to a degree, but ignored where it became extraneous. A standard lakeside landscape becomes something fascinating. Could it be that, sometimes, a bent rule can yield something fresh? Something fantastic?

5.3.08. Cropped to 3X5, boosted contrast and saturation, reduced lowlights.