Exercise 11: Balance

I'm not sure I fully understand this exercise and how to look for balance in a photograph.  Perhaps that is why I'm rarely pleased with my finished photos.

The object of the exercise was to look at previously taken photos and decide whereabouts the balance in the photograph was. This could be masses of tone or colour, or arrangements of points or lines.

Photograph 1:



Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM lens, 32mm, f/10, 1/50, ISO100

I think this photograph is balanced because the two highlighted area sit equally either side of the weighing scale. I don't like this photo and don't think it works well at all.  I therefore don't understand why it is balanced, it might be that there is too much going on in the photo and for a picture to be truly balanced it needs less.



Photograph 2:



Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM lens, 50mm, f/5.0, 1/60, ISO100



I chose this photo as the composition was very simple and hence the balance easy to identify.  I quite like this photo of a church stained glass window.  However, I'm not sure I like it because it is balanced more because of the light coming through the window (still not sure if I get how to balance a photo....  hopefully it will come).



Photograph 3:

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM lens, 105mm, f/8.0, 1/500, ISO100



I chose this photograph because I was struggling to find any balance.  I have marked the row of houses and the windmill separately.  Is this  balanced because the object of interest (the windmill) is nearer the centre of the frame than the houses?

Photograph 4:

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM lens, 45mm, f/10.0, 1/80, ISO100

I chose this image as I really couldn't find any balance within the photo (although I do quite like it).  Is this image giving visual tension like the course notes suggest when a photograph has little or no obvious balance, I am unsure!

Photograph 5:

This is another photograph that I really like but I struggle to find any balance to it.