The best landscape images often have balance. The elements within the scene are in harmony. Visual elements and color carry weight. Large elements weigh more. Darker colors weigh more than lighter colors. Balance means that visual weight is well balanced.

The lit rocks in the top right of the image carry a lot of weight. If we have nothing on the bottom left to balance that visual weight out the image will just not be pleasing. The plants on the bottom left does a great job here of providing that sought after balance. They add color too. The viewers eyes go back and forth between the plants and the top lit rocks. This creates what we call flow. Great flow is where the flow leads into the image. Bad flow is when the flow leads the viewer out of the image.

          Visual weight and flow work together to bring about harmony and to lead from one element to another or to lead your eye from one place to another. Think of an image as being on a judge's scale. The middle center of the image is pinned to the scale. If one side of the image drops down the image is not balanced.  Obviously the lit rocks are much larger and physically heavier than the plants in the foreground. Visual weight does not care about physical weight. We use distance to cancel out the imbalance. Closer object visually weight more. That is why the plants can balance out the heavier rocks. The rocks are in the distance and therefore visually weight less.

          Place your objects strategically to create balance. Look for things in the foreground that would balance heavy objects in the background. A balanced composition is pleasing to look at.