I like this photograph because it demonstrates both thematically and stylistically the relationship between the pyramid on the left, the people in the middle, and the train on the right; between the past behind us, where we stand in the present, and the future right in front of us.

The composition of this photograph is vital for the expression of this idea. Three planes of significance are created where objects inhabit the space of the photograph. The first is the very left of the photograph where the pyramid is, the second is the middle of the photograph where the people are, and the third is the very right of the photograph where the train is. These areas are very distinct (they do not bleed into one another) and the placement of them side by side suggests a sort of linear march of time. The objects used to represent each of these categories of time are appropriate. The past is represented with a still photograph. The picture, like the photograph, is set, static, unchanging. Contrastingly the oncoming future is represnted by a real train which we sense is still in motion because we can see the people waiting for it. The tain is also set back a bit in the photograph, and it makes the viewer feel that it will soon catch up, like the future, to the rest of the objects in the photogarph that are placed more toward the front. Also, it is of no little significance that all of the people in the photograph have their backs turned to the pyramid and are facing the train. This is a visual representation of the common sayings that the past is behind us and that we should look forward toward the future.

This is not to say, though, that the past should be ignored. Even though the people seem to be more engaged with the future and the approaching train than they are with the pyramid and the past, it is evident that the past has played an important role in shaping both the present and the future. The pyramid has a very boxy and linear shape, and this pattern is echoed in nearly every other part of the photograph. The tiles on the floor, the panneling on the wall, the beams of light on the ceiling, the shape of the train, and the shapes of the bags that people are carrying are all very boxy and linear. In this way, the photograph suggests that the past still has a great influence on the present and the future, whether we realize it or not.

One last aspect of the photograph that I would like to note is the use of lighting. All of the very bright, direct sources of light that we can see are associated with the train and with the future. The beams of light on the ceiling are all pointing toward the right of the picture, one bright headlight is plainly visible on the train, and the bright patch of light at the very back of the photograph is where the train seems to be emerging from. These bright lights obscure detail, thereby giving us the sense that the future is unknown.