Heather Angel

Heather Angel.

Heather Angel was born in 1941. She is a Fellow of the British institute of Professional Photography and of the Royal Photographic Society – being its president from 1984-86, when she founded their Nature Group. She is vice president of the Nature in Art Trust. She is renowned as a nature photographer, author and television presenter. For this reason I have researched her work.

One of Heather’s favourite photographic sites is Kew Gardens. It is from these that I have taken my examples, since the subject matter will be closer to my chosen subject – an English garden.

The image of the squirrel is placed centrally in the frame. The face and paws, which are the important features of the image, are perfectly in focus with the eye being bright and making contact with the viewer – ‘I am enjoying this!’. The fore and background are agreeably out of focus – a narrow depth of field is employed, providing no distraction but a pleasant colour against which to exhibit the range of browns and greys of the squirrel fur. The mid ground is still in focus, and it is debatable whether the large green leaf by the squirrel is a distraction. Personally I think not. The perspective appears to be on the same level as the squirrel – another reason why eye contact appears to occur.  This is the type of image I would like to attain.

There are two major intersection points for the Rule of Thirds. Initially in the top right hand side where the tail crosses the branch; the second being where the squirrel’s mouth touches the feeder. The grey-browns of the squirrel are perfectly complemented by the greens of the leaves in the background; the leaves are sufficiently out of focus to prove interesting yet not distract the eye. The straightness of the squirrel’s body is fascinating, giving an interesting (reverse J) shape to the squirrel. The effect is to show the mischievousness of the squirrel – ‘I know I shouldn’t be here!’.  Yet I find this image less satisfying. The eye seems slightly out of focus; the feeder and its hangers are a distraction; the shot seems snatched and contrived.

Blackbirds are common visitors to my garden and an image such as this should be attainable.  However I think the image is flawed. The architecture of the door in the background is sufficiently in focus to prove a distraction, with the top lintel of the door running along a Line of Thirds, and attracting the eye. Similarly the colours of the door frame and the masonry are a distraction. The green of the conifer hedge complements the blackbird perfectly, but the hedge line does not follow the Line of Thirds. I wonder if a landscape orientation might have worked better – although again the background is distracting.

The following three images are of robins:

This image does not follow the rule of thirds, nor is the bird central. Yet the image works. However the central point of the image is at the bottom of the red breast – which is itself a rectangle. The eye is drawn here, and thence to the eye of the robin. The area of white bark to the right of the robin is also a strong rectangle and again leads the eye to the centre of the photo, whilst a solitary line of green again feeds into this small area. The main colours to notice are the red and white of the feathers, black of the eye and beak, and white of the bark. The rest of the bird is lost. But the image is very pleasing and comforting. We all know this round robin, feathers fluffed against the frost on the ground – it is a shot to elicit our sympathy.

The next two shots are of a robin on fence, with the second image cropped to bring the bird closer.

In the first image we are made aware of the whole  context of the image where the garden dominates and the bird looks small, isolated and vulnerable. In the second image the bird dominates – we are intrigued by what it is holding in its beak – not even noticed in the first image.

Both images work – my personal preference being the latter image as I am interested in the bird rather than the garden.

The last three images are of flora:

Again these are images of the same topic – one close up and one to give an image of the surroundings. Both are very effective – delightful colours, beautifully complementing each other. However in this instance I prefer the more distant image.  In the second image the background does not distract and the eye floats effortlessly form flower to flower, ponders the leaves and dark background and is drawn back to the colours with the right hand flower lying on a Line of Thirds.

In the first, close up photo the distraction lies in the strong shadow which lies on the flower – it stops me seeing the centre of the flower clearly.

This final image I find delightful.  The autumn browns, greens and yellows are wonderfully complementary. The presence of the beetle and the dying leaves show that visible life on the tree is ceasing. Yet the yellow of the horse chestnut , just opening to show the healthy and shiny nut within shows that life will be continuing. The textures are very clear – the shiny nut, the prickly case, the dying and wrinkling leaves, the stems smooth and still alive. This shows the eye of a photographer open to and understanding her surroundings. This is certainly the type of image I wish to emulate



Reference: www.naturalvisions.co.uk
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