Photo of nothing.

Another shot in the aftermath of the Christmas Eve snowstorm…from the little patch of second-growth forest across the street. A little stream wanders through, still too warm to freeze. Shots like this, that have no obvious center of focus…no subject…are challenging for some folks. Some, when I have posted them in the past, have called them “pictures of nothing.” I like them. I like the way the stream draws the eye into the image (if you let it), creating a sense of depth, and encouraging our pattern-seeking instinct to try to make sense of the jumble of snow-covered branches overhead. The strong arc of the branch on the top rule of thirds line forms something like a horizon (I cropped the image slightly to put it right there)…and you find its echo in the similar arcs just above the stream. The arcs contrast with the strong uprights of the winter trees, their exposed bark adding the only touch of real color and warmth. Did I see all of that when I pressed the shutter? Certainly not. I saw something worth taking a second to frame, turned the camera on its side for a vertical, and framed it. I like what I saw. Only in processing the image and posting it here did I figure out what I liked about it. Which is why I always say you have not taken a photograph until you have shared it. Sony a6700. Sigma 16-300 at 24mm equivalent field of view. Auto Landscape Mode. Processed in Photomator.