We’re constantly taking photos, from Instagrammed images of that really good sandwich at lunch to posed, just-so portraits of family gatherings.
It’s easy: look through the viewfinder, center the subject, and press the shutter button, right? Next time, try skipping step two — take those few seconds to put your subject off-center, and see how much more engaging your pictures become. Say hello to the Rule of Thirds.
We’ve touched on the Rule of Thirds before in posts on composition and cropping. Basically, the Rule of Thirds asks you to imagine a tic-tac-toe grid over the thing you’re photographing, and suggests that you put your subject at one of the four spots where the lines intersect:
Placing your subject a bit off-center can have a few benefits for your photos:
- It adds context. The viewer gets more detail, and a better sense of how the subject relates to the surroundings.
- It hints at motion (and emotion). Putting the subject off-center adds drama and interest. It can create the appearance that your subject is either coming or going; in the case of a person or animal, it may suggest that they’re looking forward or back. By creating a fuller scene, you invite viewers into the story.
- It gives the viewer’s eye more to do. Rather than just looking at a center point and being done with it, an off-center photo invites us to explore — to follow the sight line of the deer, for example, as in the photo above.
Here’s one of my dog-nephews, Henry:
This would have been adorable with Henry in the center, because Henry is cute as a fuzzy brown-and-white button. Putting him off-center in the lower left of the image made him seem lonelier, reinforcing his puppy-dog eyes. (Sorry, Henry! You’re a good boy.)
Even basic shots of inanimate objects get a boost, like this sign at the entrance of the Mystery Spot in Santa Cruz, California:
It could have just been a picture of a sign. Instead, it makes the view feel like they’re entering the Mystery Spot themselves.
A slightly different application also does a world of good for landscape photography:
In this case, I used the Rule of Thirds to think about placement of the lone boat and the horizon. We tend to put the horizon line in the center of photos. Splitting the scene into thirds — two-thirds sky, one-third water — helped produce the ethereal but moody image I was after.
(This image also serves as photo proof that I don’t always put my subjects in the bottom left of photos… just most of the time.)
It also works vertically:
I could have put the village in the center of the picture, but didn’t for two reasons: one, I took this photo through the window of a moving bus, so composition was partly decided for me. But second, and more importantly, I wanted to emphasize the tenuous fragility of stilt homes perched along a vast, ever-shifting waterway, and keeping them to one-third of the frame helped me do that.
The Rule of Thirds is just a guideline, not a rule, and there will be times when it doesn’t work for you — when you want to minimize the background, or fill the frame with your subject. Give it a try in your everyday shooting, though, and see if it doesn’t add a bit more life to your images.
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Excellent tips and explanations! Thank you!
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As a rank amateur, I’m sure I’ll find this very helpful 🙂 Thanks!
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Cute dog! I’ve read about it photography part of my textbook for film studies. Now, I feel like I can take better photos.
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So so helpful! Thanks.
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your explanation of the rule of thirds was great and simple! in school it really baffled me because the instructors made it seem like something so complex
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Excellent advice! Thanks for sharing!
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I have tried my best, but not sure if I could get the Rule of Thirds in my photos
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hey you can always crop them
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I use it a lot in my paintings. Sometimes without even thinking about it. http://mybrothersbeardmachine.wordpress.com/from-the-bristles-of-my-beard/
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Thanks! I’ll be implementing this!
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Thanks for the tip, I can see how the third rule, can make a major impact!
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Great photos. Of course, *I know* all these tips but it is great to be reminded of them one at a time. Photography is an ever evolving skill, you learn something with each piccie (or at least noob me does!) which is something I really love about it. I shall be awaiting future tips with interest. I’m looking forward to next month as I will be getting some 5500k 150w bulbs to use at night to do some better shots of dinner! Yay! 😀
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Good advice and pointers. Thanks!
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will definitely try with the food shots! Thanks!
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Thanks for the tip. I’ve heard of the rule of thirds but have never seen the intersecting lines trick. Also thanks for introducing me to the term dog-nephew 🙂
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I found this post very helpful. I am a photography enthusiast and thought that the tips in this blog were interesting!
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Thanks for this post. Here’s one of my efforts: Feeling shy but darned if I’ll show it: http://wp.me/pKVAM-zC
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Thanks for the great tips! Love your photos.
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very informative I have always wanted to get a little better with my photos and have them actually tell a story. thanks for the post.
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I learned this in the photography class I took when I was in sixth grade and I haven’t taken many photos with the object in the middle since then because it just didn’t look as good. Haha.
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Excellent info. The tic-tac-toe image will stay in my mind. Very helpful.
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cool ik this rule 😀
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It’s fascinating how such a small difference in timing or position can make such a different impact on the photo being taken
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I love the picture s of animals!!!
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You’re right! Setting the subject off-center creates a more interesting picture ~ Thank you so much for the pointer!
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This is good info. Thanks!
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Great tip 🙂
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Think I’ll dedicate the coming week to shooting this way. Let’s see how that leans. 😉
!.!.!
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Great tips and definitely something I shall try; thankyou!
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