A Buddhist monk enjoys a surprise while studying the spires of Shwedagon through a powerful telescope. The famed Burmese pagoda is plated with over 8,000 solid gold slabs and topped by an orb studded with 5,000 diamonds. No wonder this fellow seems stunned! He was just as surprised in living color, but the vivid hues of his maroon robe and the yellow building in the background definitely shared equal billing with that surprise. I abstract the picture by converting it to black and white, shifting the emphasis to the monk’s astonished expression. By carefully leaving a thin ribbon of negative space between his mouth and thumb, and his nose and telescope, I add tension that brings more energy into his amazed response. I give the viewer less information, leave more to the imagination, and convey my story in a more universal manner.