But not everyone follows it because rules are made to be broken. Haha. So now what? Well, as my favorite online photography instructor Darren Rowse said in his article Rule of Thirds: “…if you intend to break a rule you should always learn it first to make sure your breaking of it is all the more effective!” Correct. How can you break a rule if you don’t know about it? This most basic of photography composition is oftentimes ignored. Yet time and again it has been espoused and emphasized even by the masters because of its proven value and impact. Not that you have to follow it all the time because there are some shots that are equally striking when you put the point of interest in the center of the frame to create balance or symmetry. Following the rule of thirds come naturally to photographers, it is a guide ingrained in the system. They know what shots are worth taking with the rule in mind, and what shots are best with the subject right smack in the middle of the frame. Go back to the basics of composition and read the article. The good thing about this is you can apply it even in previous photos you’ve taken. Review the photos in your hard drive and through a little editing or post-processing, try cropping them using the rule of thirds and you just might discover some gems. To borrow a metaphor, the ugly ducklings may turn out to be beautiful swans after all.
The rule of thirds,
oh everyone
knows about it
...the rule of thirds
come naturally
to photographers...
They know what shots are worth taking
with the rule in mind,
and what shots are best with the subject
right smack
in the middle
of the frame.