Crops and Discoveries

 Lens-artists challenge #385 – unusual crop.  

First, here’s the assignment and the inspiration:

What an Unusual Crop! No, I cannot do this; it’s too hard. No, it’s not. Give it a try, be bold, be creative. You can do it. Exceed yourself, like they say in the Olympics.

Cropping stands as one of the most potent yet frequently underutilized compositional elements in photography. This week, we encourage you to deliberately defy traditional framing conventions. Consider slicing off parts of your subject or positioning it at the far edge of your shot. You might even depict only a hint of an object or an intriguing shadow or reflection. Unconventional crop photography often employs tight, asymmetrical framing techniques—like truncating limbs, using extreme close-ups, or positioning subjects right at the frame’s border—to evoke mystery, abstraction, and artistic tension. Approaches include using a 1:1 aspect ratio to hone in on specific details, employing diagonal lines in your compositions, or leveraging negative space to highlight elements such as the intricate surface of a leaf.

My first thought was exactly Ritva’s prediction, No, I cannot do this; it’s too hard.  Truth?  I thoroughly enjoyed trying to find some images that might withstand some “unusual cropping”.  Funny thing —  in some cases, elements that, when the image was in my usual, more basic crop mode, details that I’d never before noticed, emerged.  My catalogue is much smaller and less diverse than Ritva’s but I’ve done my best and I hope y’all enjoy looking at my first stab at “unusual crop”.

Belfry

St. James Anglican, Roseneath, ON.
Following an arsonist’s attack on a beautiful old church, built by pioneers in 1863.

Victoria Hall, Cobourg, ON.
Built in 1856.

I’m always quite taken with a belfry and I wondered if —“cropping” out the main part of the building — they would be more impressive…

Bridge

Dickinson Road CP Rail Overpass
Wood plank bridge deck, Port Hope, ON.
By cropping, I could see the tracks below the bridge which were invisible in the previous crop.

Wight’s Island Bridge
Bridge construction element.
Trent River Village, ON.

Animals

Holstein Friesian (Bos taurus taurus)
This dairy breed, very common here in Ontario, originated in the Netherlands.
“Get that smelly tail out of my face!”

Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis)
If you look closely, through the window to our den, you can see the reflection of the television in her eye. That was “invisible” in its original crop.

Birds

Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator)
Splendid plumage, non?

Great Egret (Ardea alba)
“Big Foot”
Caldwell First Nations’ Boardwalk, Leamington, ON.

American Robin (Turdus migratorius)
Cutest wee bum of the day!
Carolinian Forest, Kingsville, ON.

It flies!

[These could easily have been in last week’s “Astonishment” challenge.]

Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus)
It has claws!
Not visible in original crop.

Large Orange Sulphur (Phoebis agarithe)
(Butterfly)
Look at the “sensilla” on her antenna!
Not visible in original crop.

It pays to have a close friend who is a Naturalist.  Mine told me that the olfactory sensilla (sometimes “tactile sensilla”) function for both smell and touch.  These fine, hair-like structures are used to detect pheromones and nectar.

Twelve-spotted Skimmer (Libellula pulchella)
Day one of its life!

The Dragonfly nymph crawls out of the water, splits its skin on a plant or rock, and emerges as a winged adult, leaving behind an empty shell called an exuvia. It is not quite fully detached yet in this shot.

Mystery

Any guesses?

Best for last!

On Valentine’s Day how could I not have included my Cam?!?
I don’t (almost never) shoot people so the unusual crop on people was a tough one for me.  
Kingsville, ON

Erie Shores Golf Club
Soft hands – chipping across the sand trap.

When he learned the topic of this week’s challenge, Cam (the farmer) asked me, Crops? Oats, wheat, corn?

Thank you for reading my post, I hope you enjoyed it, but for a master class in “unusual crop” I strongly urge you to visit Ritva’s post (link):  Lens-artists challenge#385 – unusual crop

’Til next time, y’all…