Placing the Darks for Emphasis

In this painting of an unloading dock in Eastpoint, Florida,  I began with the light midtones and then began to place dark midtones and dark values around the right edge of the structure.  Working outward from there, I kept lessening the darks to keep the emphasis on the textures of the dock which was my main interest in the scene. 

The overall shape of the dock structure was also a consideration.  I wanted it interlock with the background to form an L shape.  That created a balance problem.  I didn't want all of the weight of the composition to be on the left, so I added the shrimp boat on the right.

So much to think about while designing a composition.