This photograph, taken by Robert Doisneau and published in Life Magazine (1948), is titled Sidelong Glance. The title of the photograph serves to emphasize what is almost immediately apparent upon first glimpse of the image. In the picture, a couple stands window shopping on a Paris street. The photo was taken from inside the window and captures a brief, but comedic moment. Doisneau set the photo up to catch the reactions of window shoppers to a particularly striking painting that was visible from the street. According to an interview he did with Regard Oblique (Paris, 1948), Doisneau hid his camera inside a chair and simply waited for people to pass by and react to the painting that was considered particularly risqué at the time. His wait paid off and Doisneau was able to capture this image of a man looking across his female companion at a nude painting. Symmetrical subject placement within the frame, the Rule of Thirds and a use of varying depths all contribute to attract the viewers attention to the aspects of the image that communicate the most meaning, thereby conveying the irony and comedy that Doisneau was so famous for in many of his photographs.

The couple on the right and the nude painting on the left of the frame balance each other out symmetrically and rest middle of the frame on a vertical axis. This technique draws the viewer's attention directly to the communication between the subjects: the woman is talking to the man, the man is ignoring the woman and instead looking across her at the nude. Doisneau identifies these subjects clearly, and furthers the feeling of irony by placing the nude at two intersections on the Rule of Thirds grid. The man, on the other hand, stands outside the focal points on the grid, and seems instead to sneak in from the side of the frame. Finally, Doisneau used depth variation to create a visually engaging photograph that grabs the viewer's attention and keeps it. There are three layers to the photograph: inside the store, the couple at the window, and the street behind them. Keeping the viewer visually invested in the image by creating texture with depth perception, Doisneau gives the viewer the time necessary to fully appreciate the subtle comedy of a situation that would otherwise appear mundane.

Sources

http://www.photoicon.com/modern_masters/46/

http://www.masters-of-photography.com/images/screen/doisneau/doisneau_sidelong_glance.jpg