My inspiration came while I was on campus...because I remembered this assignment a half hour before class started. Sorry for the sloppy job, but I do think my pictures capture the essence of the assignment, and they don't look bad either.

Radial Symmetry

Bilateral Symmetry

Asymmetrical

Kimball Barker

symmetry in pictures

For my pictures, I focused on a lot of man-made things that obviously have some sort of symmetry or balance intentionally put into their design. It was interesting to see how many industrial things incorporate these principles and we don't even notice!

Surprisingly, I found a ton of things with radial symmetry. I took pictures of clocks, the knobs on my stove, the burners on my stove, flowers, and more. I had never realized how much we use balanced circles. I am a big watch person, so of course I had to pick a picture of my favorite watch.

Next was asymmetrical balance. This is EVERYWHERE, but it was hard to capture it in an aesthetically pleasing way. I really like the way my roommate decorates her room, she doest a good job with balancing things both symmetrically and asymmetrically. I also thought this was a good example because we can see symmetry in her little porcelain of the Salt Lake temple and radial symmetry in her owl picture frame. 

Last but not least, bilateral symmetry! My roommate went to the movies and brought home popcorn last night, I thought this was a great example. If you cut the the heart right down the middle it is perfectly even. This is mirrored in the rough edge in the popcorn bag, as well as the print and the popcorn kernels. Although it isn't perfect, maybe even a little asymmetrical (the kernels and print specifically) you can see the balance and how it is attractive to the eye. Well done, Coke.

Bilateral Symmetry:

Radial Balance:

Asymmetrical Balance:

I changed the first two to black and white because it showed the composition more, but kept the last one in color because the colors contrast in just the way I like them, white with red while all being surrounded by yellow. Adds to the effect I think.

Photo composition exercise

I tried to find interesting composition in the things I see most often.

I found an example of bilateral symmetry looking towards the library. The skylights, sidewalks and landscaping are the same on either side.

I found it interesting that I could use this tree as a dividing line and get completely different things on either side (mountains, size of bushes, trees). It almost looks like two photos spliced together. The trees and small shrubs balance out the mountains and large shrubs, so I think this is an example of asymmetrical balance.

I've always liked photos looking down long roads, so I tried one myself, looking for bilateral symmetry.

-Jackson Hadley

Composition Assignment

 This first picture uses bilateral symmetry since the grave stones are equal on both halves of the photo. I would have gotten a closer more level picture but I just didn't feel comfortable with the idea of stepping one someone else's property.

 This was my lunch today. This photo uses radial symmetry since the chicken all comes out from a singular focal point. It was delicious by the way.

Although this isn't asymmetrically balanced exactly I like how the sign (which takes up half of the photo) makes it clear that BYU did not want people on the grass yet in the other half of the photo you see that not only people are on the grass but playing some quiditch like game. So the irony in this photo is asymmetrical if nothing else.

Assignment Re-Do

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1. This is a picture of a grate above the projector area in one of the Brimhall's classrooms. I picked this picture as an example of bisymmetry because if you cut it in half, you would have the same image on each side

2. My second picture is an example of radial symmetry because each section that comes out from this grate is equal to every other section

3. My last picture is of a tree and it is my example of asymmetrical balance. Even though each half of the tree is different because of the branches, it is still balanced because there is about the same number and volume of branches and leaves on each of the tree

photo re-do

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1. This image, taken in SLC, shows bilateral symmetry. If you were to cut it vertically down the middle, each half would be pretty much identical. 

2. This picture illustrates asymmetrical balance. While both halves (horizontal halves) are not symmetrical, they are balanced. The taller trees on the left balance out the taller mountains on the right side of the picture. This also shows the rule of thirds. The foreground landscape roughly takes up 1/3 of the picture while the sky roughly takes up the other 2/3 of the picture. 

3. This image, of a metal jar/container, shows radial symmetry. The knob that sticks out in the center of the jar acts as the central axis and everything is symmetrical around this axis. 

Photos, take 2!

Bilateral symmetry

 the dreaded stairs!! They are the WORST. But i thought that this picture with the stairs in the middle and tress of different colors on each side was beautiful. I had never taken time to look around me as I walked up them because I'm always in a rush to get to class. They aren't the same trees on each side, but the fact that there are trees gives it a nice balance.

Asymmetrical Balance

 The Duck pond! I have always found ducks hilarious animals. This duck was just sitting there, seeming to contemplate whether she really wanted to jump in or not. I also like all the negative space created by the water on the left side with the focus of the picture being on the right. To me, it portrays the uncertainty of the water for the duck, and the uncertainty of the impending winter for her.

Radial Symmetry

Tennis, my passion. I tried to get a shallow depth of field on this, but iPhones don't really cooperate. Too mainstream! But i liked the repetition of the ball, with the racquet in the background.

Autumn Day

Example 1:  the crosswalk sign is the focus on the picture.  This is an example of shallow depth perception as we can see the tree and other things in the background are blurred.

Example 2: Our beloved testing center! :)  This is an example of the use of the rule of third.  The testing center is in the left quadrant, still pleasing to the eye.

Example 3:  using symmetry.  this photo can almost be split right down the middle and be symmetrical. One of the reasons I love fall so much, all these gorgeous trees!

Example 4:  Asymmetrical symmetry.  Although the trees aren't symmetrical, they balance each other out thanks to their placement.

Bilateral and Asymmetrical Goodies

I thought this was a perfect shot to take to explain the bilateral ...

...aand who could go wrong with any picture of the fall/autumn-ness! I wanted to focus more on the trees closest to me and still have a great shot of the Y mountain for the background...

Sorry I was sick.... Typography

I was sick all of last week. I didn't even go to school for most of the time. Also I do not have Photoshop so I just improvised with Microsoft Paint.

Anyways I just took an ultra basic screen caption of a movie that I really likes called "End of Watch."

It's a Cop Thriller that ends with a massive shootout between a Latino Street Gang and the Police. I wanted the text to take away as little as possible from the picture with the gangster behind the officer.

A walk on campus

I like this picture because I think it has some asymmetrical features which cause the bench and the grass to balance each other out.  It gives the picture a sense of being balanced, even though the bench as the main object is in the right 1/3 of the picture.  Also, the lighting helps with the sense of balance, because the dark colored stones on the right, compared to the bright colored grass, makes the picture seem more balanced as well.

I saw the SWKT from the sidewalk at this point and realized that it looked perfectly bi-symmetrical.  I changed the colors to black and white because I actually took this picture at night.  Also, the black and white adds to the effects of the plain bi-symmetrical features.  

In this picture, I liked that your focus is on the leafless branches on the left 1/3 of the picture, but you loose focus as your eyes are drawn down the line of bushes.  What is interesting is that the bushes to the right, seem to have more leaves, but actually all of the bushes had around the same number of leaves, but because they go out of focus, they seem more dense.  

Balance & Umbrellas

These two photos are to replace two photos I used on my last blog that I had taken previously. This first photo shows symmetry, as the vertical line of the umbrella holder splits the composition in two.

The second picture shows asymmetrical balance. The line of the umbrella helps split the composition on a diagonal line. It also uses the rule of thirds. 

Super awesome and exciting trash can.

This is an oh-so-artsy photograph of the trash can at my apartment complex. It displays radial symmetry. (This makes up for one of my previous photos taken from the past.)

Photosition

My first photograph shows bilateral symmetry. If you were to take the temple and fold it in half, both sides would be the same. Most architecture is designed with this type of symmetry in mind, but even without the building, the picture itself represents bilateral symmetry because the temple is centered in the middle of the picture and divide the picture in two. It emphasizes the subject in the picture by making it the center of attention. I took this one in St. George at the temple. Bilateral symmetry makes a statement and a point. 

My second picture shows radial symmetry form the rose center and how it spirals outward, but draws your attention towards the middle. It also has a shallow depth of field, which emphasizes the rose and blocks out the rest of the greenery around it. I took this one in my garden where my landlord has planted some magnificent roses. I think radial symmetry creates movement and motion in photography. It eliminates the harsher elements and hard lines.

My third picture shows asymmetrical balance because each side of the picture is a little different but have an equal weight in the picture. The photo is "balanced" but the side are not the same. The subject is centered but uneven because he is standing on one leg. I like asymmetrical balance because it makes photography interesting and unusual. 

Playing with symmetry with old photos

This first photo was taken in la Casa Rosada in Argentina. Even thou it is a little bit crooked the light help us to see the symmetry in this building. This is a good a example of bilateral symmetry.

My cousin took this picture. I always liked but never thought about the symmetry but now that I see it I can tell that the composition of this picture is interesting because it has an asymmetrical balance. 

Finally in this photo we try to recreate an radial symmetry the big whole in the middle was our central axis. Playing this symmetry is fun because it creates different effects. Also, it shows me that something has to be same (bilateral symmetry) to be perfect of beautifu. One of my favorites is asymmetrical balance because it let you play with different elements.

Pictures

Bilateral Symmetry - I was in the library studying and I saw that the walls of the study booths are symmetrical.

Radial Symmetry - I was with my friends in the library and we did a star using our fingers. It is an example of radial symmetry.

Assymetrical Balance - My best friend loves fall so I took this picture of her using the principle learned in class of assymetrical balance. 

...SymMEtrY...

To me, this assignment was pretty easy, but at the same time it was rather fun. I enjoy going around taking pictures or looking through my previously taken pictures in order to look for symmetry. Examples of symmetry are all over the place and it is fun to recognize all the symmetry when you are actually looking for it.

Here's my first example of symmetry:

No, I don't have the ability to go take a picture of the JFSB from the top looking down without giving the impression that I found the picture online, but the very first thing I noticed when thinking this assignment was that this building we are meeting in is very symmetrical, in the bilateral form. Especially the second floor. As you look at this map of the second floor, you'll notice that it is perfectly symmetrical down to every single room and turn. It's fascinating!

My second example will be of radial symmetry:

Once again, we are in the JFSB. I wasn't able to get a perfect picture of this, but I did my best and got more than just a picture of the map where this is at. I've always loved spiral staircases and it's fun to see the radial symmetry of this staircase from the top looking down. I encourage you to go check this out after class.

And finally, asymmetrical balance:

This is the toughest one for me to find actually, but as I browse through the pictures I have taken recently, this picture of our dinner table outside at my brother's house has a very asymmetrical thing going on with those cups and the angles I have on the different cups. They appear different sizes because they get increasingly further away and they definitely aren't symmetrical bilaterally or radially, but you definitely get a visual balance as you look at them.

Photography

This one is bilateral symmetry. The middle line is a unique point, and it's symmetrical on either side. 

I thought this was radial symmetry. It's symmetrical with the same pattern in a circle surrounding a central point.

This is asymmetrical balance. The opposite sides are not identical. There are different cars and different buildings on either side of the path. However, they are weighted the same. 

- Chad Burton