PH21 Gallery - Shape

Shapes are one of the most important aspects of creative photographic compositions. Living beings and inanimate objects, including the built environment, come in many forms, and photographers often rely on the creative possibilities offered by their shapes. While in some cases the images of things only serve a depictive function, at the other end of the spectrum, abstract photography concentrates on shapes and forms for their own sake, to the point where we can no longer recognise the depicted objects themselves. Between being either insignificant or the only significant element, the shape of recognisable forms may also be the driving compositional component of an image. That is, the shapes of living beings and objects may be of central importance to the composition of photographs, not only in abstract photography but also in virtually all other photographic genres. These images capture our attention and stand out for their creative compositional form.