Rule of Thirds

Professional photographers, graphic designers, and artists of all kinds use the “Rule of Thirds” principle to compose their photographs and art pieces. Applying the rule of thirds takes some practice and forethought, but creates magnificent photographs.

While most people naturally center an image in their viewfinder, the rule of thirds uses a slightly different approach. When looking through your viewfinder, imagine the frame divided into thirds both horizontally and vertically so that you have nine equal-sized parts. The rule of thirds states that the four points where the lines intersect are the strongest points in which to place the most important feature of your photo.

The rule of thirds can also be used to compose pictures when subjects are moving. You typically want anything moving through the frame– like a car or cyclist– to have space to move into. You will also want to use this technique when you photograph someone who is not looking directly at the lens. Be sure to allow their eyes some room to gaze into the photo. If the composition is off, the viewer will be drawn away from the subject instead of towards them.

But what if sometimes the image doesn’t turn out and it creates a wrong visual effect? All is not lost. Thanks to photo editing software, most composition issues can be corrected. Simple cropping can much to change your existing off-balance photo into one that follows the “rule of thirds” principle.

Think about the composition before you press the shutter button. Pay close attention to the imaginary intersecting lines and line up your frames accordingly. Only then, will you see the “rule of thirds” results that you can be proud of.

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