Capturing Composition

Artist Statement:

"Low Horizon Line"

The subject of this image is the two miniature soldiers among the relatively tall grass. They are set in a dry and grassy area near a building as well as some tall trees set in front of a blue sky. Besides natural elements and existing structures, I stood two toy soldiers upright and in a way that made them appear to be scouring the land while on duty. The goal was to create an image with a low horizon, while also featuring the soldiers in an interesting manner. I tried to create a sharp contrast between the colors of the sky and ground to give it a clear horizon. I also tried to utilize space, to make it apparent how small the soldiers are.

The image has a low horizon line, as seen in the line between the sky and the ground, which rests about three quarters of the way down the image from the top. Originally, the image had a much brighter and more colorful tone, but I decided to make it more faded to give it a classic wartime vibe. Other than that, the properties of the image remain the same as when I took the picture.

The image is a snapshot of two miniature soldiers, who have come to life to survey the area (à la "Toy Story"). They're doing their best to make sure that no bugs or other enemies will bring harm to their platoon of toy soldiers. The image shows that they may be out of their depths, as it is a very large world for two soldiers so small. Nevertheless, they're determined complete their mission. The project relates to me in the fact that it takes place at Freeport High School, a place where, like these two soldiers, I attempt to find new things every day. I think the image might be stronger if I made the horizon more horizontal in the image, because I feel like the ground around the soldiers may be a little cramped. Flattening out the horizon would open it up a little more.