The "Z" in Landscape Paintings

I spent my 4th of July morning painting at Boothbay Shores.  This is the causeway out to Ocean Island.  The stone gate is iconic and makes the scene instantly recognizable. 

I positioned my easel so that the rocky beach was prominent.  The driveway leads the viewer's eye out to the woody island.  The dark values and the dark midtones  take your gaze from the foreground up to the island, and then off to the left where the dark rocks are silhouetted against the sea.  This forms a classic "Z" technique.  Coincidentally, the gate breaks the more or less straight lines along the driveway and then interrupts the line of rocks.  Once you follow the line of darks, the bushes on the left stop your eye and lead you back to the gate.

This "Z" technique can also be used with light shapes as well.

A final note:  The pink tone on the roadway is echoed in the light rocks in the distance.  So the pink tone also forms a secondary "Z".  The pinks in the tree shape on the island break up the greens which could become unrelenting without the complementary color.