Have you ever wondered why some photos look fantastic and others look kind of bland and uninteresting? The reason could be that the photo’s composition does not adhere to the “Rule of Thirds.” The Rule of Thirds is a basic photography composition concept for giving interest to a photograph and a way of making the photo more appealing to the eye.
Most of us take photos using the view finder or the display window on the back of our digital camera. In most cases, we make sure the subject is centered and we click. Although more than likely a good photo, we can add more interest to our photos by applying the Rule of Thirds.
The Rule of Thirds is a simple concept by dividing the photograph into nine equal parts. The points where the lines intersect are sometimes called power points. If you place your subject on or near these points, your photos will ultimately have more interest. Keep in mind that the Rule of Thirds is really not a rule, but a guideline for better composition. This doesn’t mean to say, if you break the rule you won’t end up with a good photo. Use good judgment when taking photos and you will have photos that create interest and look great.
I took this photo at the Hokone National Park in Japan. By applying the Rule of Thirds, you can see the vertical line on the right intersects the main focal point of the photo, the stone monument and the vertical line on the left is near the small monument. This gives the photo a second point of interest and creates a sense of balance. There is an additional bonus in this photo. At the top horizontal line is Mount Fuji. The bottom horizontal line divides the small monument and is at the base of the stone monument.
The photo was taken with a Mamiya 645 median format camera, 80mm, f2.8 lens and Kodak 120 ASA 100 film.
Ideally, you will want to compose your photos in the view finder of your camera for good composition. However, if you have already taken some photos that could benefit from the Rule of Thirds there is a way to improve them.
I found a free method for applying the Rule of Thirds to your existing photos. This technique will allow you to apply the Rule of Thirds to your photos and crop them to comply with the rule. The link for the download and a tutorial can be found here.
If you would like to learn more about the Rule of Thirds, you can find more information here.
Are you using the Rule of Thirds when composing your photos? If you aren’t using it, give it a try and I think your photos will improve dramatically. Thank you for reading this post and I look forward to your comments.
Michael Setunsky is the Broker and owner of Michael's Commercial LLC serving the Northern Virginia commercial real estate market. His more than 23 years of experience as a commercial real estate and business broker has earned him the distinction for being one of the top commercial real estate producers in the Mid-Atlantic Region. He also serves on the Mid Atlantic Real Estate Marketing Association's (MAREMA) Board of Directors, and is a Commonwealth of Virginia licensed Instructor. He teaches Pre-licensing, Post Licensing Education, Broker's and Continuing Education courses. Visit his company web site at http://michaelscommercial.com/.