Juxtaposition
Juxtaposition is very powerful compositional tool in photography. Juxtaposition refers to the inclusion of two or more elements in a scene that can either contrast with each other or compliment each other. Both approaches can work very well and play an important part in enabling the photo to tell a story.
Take a look at this photo taken in Paris. In the bottom half of the frame, we have the slightly rough and ready book stands full of clutter and posters hanging from the tops. Rising above all of this however is the magnificent medieval Notre Dame Cathedral. This architectural gem is the epitome of order and structure unlike the unsophisticated but attractive book stalls below. They seem to be in direct contrast with each other yet they work well together. They both represent the city of Paris in different ways. They tell a story about two different elements of the city.
The photo above was also taken in France, but this time in the picturesque little village of Meyssac in the South West. In this shot, the old Citroen 2CV car looks perfectly at home in front of the typical French cafe in the background. The two elements compliment each other perfectly. The man with his back to us in the cafe is the owner of the car and he seemed surprised when I asked if it was ok to take a picture of his car. He asked why I’d ever want to take a photo of ‘that old thing’. He didn’t seem to realise that he had unwittingly set up a quintessentially French scene by parking in front of that particularly cafe.