A red dress catches your eye before the waterfall does. Then the scale arrives: the figure is small, the falling water enormous, and the whole photograph seems to take a breath.

That relationship between a person and their surroundings is central to Elizabeth Gadd’s self-portraits. This selection returns to photographs shared in our 2014 feature, with a closer look at how colour, distance and atmosphere give them their quiet drama.

A small figure in a red dress beside a large waterfall in Elizabeth Gadd’s self-portrait
A small figure in a red dress beside a large waterfall in Elizabeth Gadd’s self-portrait. Gallery attribution: Elizabeth Gadd.

The artist behind the figure

In her own account of her photography, Gadd traces her beginnings to 2006, using her father’s camera in British Columbia. A daily self-portrait project in 2010 became an important turning point: a year of experimenting helped her find the connection between portraiture and the outdoor places she loved.

A figure standing on a boulder against layers of misty forest in Elizabeth Gadd’s photograph
A figure standing on a boulder against layers of misty forest in Elizabeth Gadd’s photograph. Gallery attribution: Elizabeth Gadd.

Her current biography describes working in real landscapes without AI or compositing, sometimes spending extended periods outdoors waiting for suitable conditions. That does not mean the photographs are unedited. It means the figure and landscape are brought together at the location, while framing, exposure and later tonal choices still shape the finished image.

Why a little colour can carry a large picture

In the waterfall photograph, red stands apart from the greys and greens around it. The dress supplies a clear point of attention without needing to fill much of the frame.

Try covering the figure with a finger. The waterfall remains impressive, but the image loses a reference that helps you read its size. The person also adds a question: are they arriving, pausing or preparing to leave? You do not need an answer for the photograph to suggest a story.

The exact waterfall is not identified here from appearance alone. The visual relationship is clear even when a precise location cannot be established.

Mist changes the space between things

In another selected image, a person stands on a boulder in front of layers of forest. The distant trees become softer and paler, separating the foreground from the landscape behind it.

This is a useful composition to study because the effect depends on several distances, rather than one spectacular object. The nearby rock anchors the picture; the figure gives it scale; the receding trees give it depth. A scene can feel expansive without showing a vast amount of sky.

Make a modest version of your own

You can explore these ideas in a familiar park or on a permitted walking route. Choose a stable place to stand and a background with clear layers. Ask a companion to help, or use a securely placed camera where you can remain on the path.

  • Make one photograph with the person large in the frame.
  • Make another with more room around them.
  • Compare whether colour, silhouette or position attracts attention first.
  • Keep the version that best expresses your own relationship with the place.

There is no need to copy a dress, a pose or a remote setting. For another way to bring people into landscape storytelling, explore Teresa Lim’s embroidered travel scenes. And for photographs where the forest becomes part of a constructed artwork, see Ellie Davies’s woodland projects.