Graphic relationships can make a photograph legible before its subject is fully recognized. Look for repeated shapes, areas of negative space and a clear relationship between light and dark.
Reduce the scene to shapes
View the image as a small thumbnail or briefly soften your focus. Identify the largest masses and the direction in which they pull the eye. Then return to the details and decide whether they reinforce that structure or interrupt it.
For a practical study, photograph one ordinary object against several backgrounds. Keep the object unchanged so the effect of surrounding shape and tone becomes easier to see.