Say Cheese! Part 3: Basic Composition

So you've got the equipment, read the manual and snapped a few photos. Perfect. You're well on your way to taking great photos. But something about the photos you've taken seems a little off or uninteresting...that's where the basic "Rule of Thirds" comes into play. The Rule of Thirds is a compositional rule of thumb in visual arts. It can be used in painting, photography, design, etc...the list goes on. The rule states that an image should be imagined as divided into nine equal parts by two equally-spaced horizontal lines and two equally-spaced vertical lines, and that important compositional elements should be placed along these lines or their intersections. The theory is that if you place points of interest in the intersections or along the lines that your photo becomes more balanced and will enable a viewer of the image to interact with it more naturally. People’s eyes usually go to one of the intersection points most naturally rather than the center of the shot - using the rule of thirds works with this natural way of viewing an image rather than working against it. Visually it may look something like this:



Utilizing this simple rule will create a more interesting photograph. Now one thing to keep in mind is that you don't have to limit yourself to this rule. That's the great thing about photography or art in general, when you know the "rules," you can bend and break them to produce the image you're looking for. So don't hold back, keep it in the back of your mind when your looking through your viewfinder or at your screen and create a healthy balance between proper composition and a creative composition. Now grab your camera and try it out. If you have a flickr or website where you upload your photos, I'd love to see your progress. Link it in the comments or click on Contact at the top and I'll take a look at your stuff. Happy Shooting!

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