Lesson 5 — Activity 3: More Elements of Visual Communication
Completion requirements
Lesson 5 — Activity 3:
More Elements of Visual
Communication
So far in Lesson 5, you have learned that art such as pictures, photos, and videos may involve many choices to represent an idea or
theme. The creators of visual messages may also use
composition
and colour to express their message more clearly to the viewer.
Composition refers to the way elements of the picture are arranged. An artist may make many different choices when composing a drawing or photograph, depending on the idea he or she wishes to express.
Some of the choices affecting composition include the following possibilities:
Composition refers to the way elements of the picture are arranged. An artist may make many different choices when composing a drawing or photograph, depending on the idea he or she wishes to express.
Some of the choices affecting composition include the following possibilities:
Juxtaposition refers to the placement of two very different subjects together in a picture. The artist may do this to make us consider the differences between the two items. For example, this picture illustrates the difference between an adult
and a baby. It may suggest the bond that grows between babies and parents due to the contrast between helplessness and strength.
Image courtesy of www.pixabay.com Vertical lines draw the viewer's eye up and down the picture and may give the viewer a sense of the strength of the subject. This picture shows the skyscrapers reaching up, perhaps indicating the power of business or of people (it also illustrates
a juxtaposition of the man-made and the natural worlds).
Image courtesy of www.pixabay.com Horizontal lines may give us a feeling of peacefulness or calmness. In this beach scene, our eye moves across a picture.
Diagonal lines or a slanted angle in the picture may suggest an action or motion.
Radiating lines are lines moving out around a subject to make the subject appear important or powerful.
Colour and lighting can also be used to give pictures or videos an unusual feeling.
Bright colours can be used to create feelings of excitement and happiness, as in this baby picture.
Dark or shadowy pictures can be used to create a feeling of fear or mystery, as in this picture of the woman.
Natural lighting can be used to create feelings of calm or peacefulness.
Blurring of colours and subjects can be used to suggest a sense of movement or action.
