Foregrounding and backgrounding...

In the past I have found the ideas of 'foregrounding' and 'backgrounding' very useful, most often in academic writing. Recently, when taking photos in York, I had to keep reminding myself to shift my focus from the big picture - the sweeping landscapes, the monumental architecture - to the often overlooked detail - a shop window display, a hidden carving... Sometimes, when the cloud settles low over the harbour, the higher, more distant 'background' hills disappear and the more proximate peninsula is foregrounded. The effect is startling, the view intimate and revealing - and somehow consoling. In my garden I find my focus is most often on the work to be done. I see what is lacking rather than what is there. And I frequently forget to stop and enjoy the tiny and detailed. So these photos were taken to celebrate pleasure in small things - and relief at the arrival of rain on a parched landscape!