Many of us have photographs we have taken, displayed within frames, in our homes.  They may be of people we love, or places we have visited, that we want to be reminded of.

One way of adding interest to a photograph is to use another object within the composition of a photograph to frame the main subject.  This technique brings depth to the photograph by giving the illusion of more than two dimensions and also serves to focus the viewer’s attention on what the main subject is.

The “frame” might be a window, a bridge, an arch, an over-hanging tree or anything else you want it to be.

Go ahead – surprise me!

Just look at this magnificent orange tree, framed by the open window frame at one of the many churches in the city of Granada.

Here you can see a young monk pausing to rest from the heat of the mid-day sun, within the Angkor Wat temple complex at Siem Reap,  Cambodia.

This is the Presa de las Bermejales, a large lake (and a man-made reservoir) situated in the west of Granada Province o­n the northern boundary of the Natural Park of Las Sierras de Tejeda, Almijara y Alhama.  This secluded spot, far from the usual tourist trail, is a haven of tranquility especially during the very busy month of August.  It´s a beautiful place to spend a peaceful few hours or days, enjoying nature at it´s best.

Last year, we took a three month trip around south-east Asia, visiting Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.   Whilst visiting Ha Noi, the capital of Vietnam, we took an overnight cruise in Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage site and voted one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature.   There were only six cabins on the boat, and I took this shot soon after morning light, with some of the islands framed by the wooden columns of the boat.  I love how the reflections shine and reflect on the polished wood.

I  was struck by the silhouettes of these people, looking out through the huge window near the entrance of the Te Papa National Museum  in Wellington, New Zealand.

Here you can see the view towards the city of Málaga from the Jardín Concepción Botanical Gardens, framed by trees.

I took this photo from inside the cave at Cathedral Cove, Hahei, New Zealand.  The tide had turned and was on the way out, meaning we had just time to run through the shallow water to spend a couple of hours in the beautiful bay beyond.

Some of the best examples of restored “Don Quixote”  Spanish windmills can be found in Consuegra, not far from Toledo in central Spain, where several mills spike the hill just outside of town.  My final image for this month’s challenge is of one of these windmills, taken from an adjacent one, through one of the tiny opening windows near to the roof.

This month´s CBBH Featured Blogs:

** Staying on the Iberian peninsula, you can find Julie Dawn Fox in Portugal, Spain’s next door neighbour, so to speak.  Julie is a talented writer and gives regular updates about her life as an expat in Portugal.

I am a huge fan of Julie’s Personal A – Z of Portugal, where she takes each letter of the alphabet and writes a different post using the letter as the basis for a post, about things she feels strongly about in Portugal.   This is a very easy blog to read, is very descriptive with many stunning photographs, which always makes me glad that Portugal is an easy drive from my home in southern Spain.

** Richard at The Last song I Heard was one of the first blogs I followed when I set up my East of Málaga blog.  I stumbled across his site, where he writes for his son, James, about songs he remembers from his formative years,  and it really struck a chord with me.  He has a great choice of music and is at present writing a book called The Rivers of Belief.

I have enjoyed reading many of Richard’s posts because he talks about growing up in England, and many of the things he mentions are very familiar to me too.  His post The Crunch – RAH Band is a particular favourite of mine.  By his own admission, Richard seems to have lost his way a bit recently, and is thinking of taking a break from blogging for a few weeks, so I’m sure he would appreciate you HOPPING over to say HELLO.  Make sure and tell him Marianne sent you 🙂

So that´s the CBBH Photo Challenge for March, folks!

Remember, all you have to do is post your entry by the end of the month,  link back to this blog and, most importantly,  don´t forget to add links to any two blogs that you´ve commented on during the past month, so that we can all HOP OVER and have a look.  Make sure you FOLLOW THIS BLOG so you don´t miss next month´s exciting challenge!

For more information on how the CBBH Photo Challenge works click here.

I hope everyone taking part enjoys the exposure the CBBH Photo Challenge offers to featured blogs and, who knows, you may end up finding a new favourite!  I´m looking forward to seeing your interpretations.

[CBBH logo Image credit: (cc) Mostly Dans]