• Most images from an
amateur photographer are
centered
• Artistically there are
composition elements, such
as lines, points, etc that
define an image
•Photographs work better
when the area (or areas) of
interest are placed off
center. And this is where the
rule of thirds comes in
• Divide your image into 9
sections
•Place areas along these
lines
• Even if not done in the
shot, can be done in editing
process later
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In portrait photography
place people’s eyes and
heads on the horizontal
lines depending on how
close up you are shooting
Use the vertical grid lines
for things like trees,
waterfalls, buildings, or
wider shot of a person
with a background behind
them
In landscape photography
use the horizontal grid
lines for things like
horizons and where water
meets land
How to use Rule of Thirds specifically
in your landscape photography
Top 1/3 line, so focus
Is on beach leading
to the people.
• Avoid placing the horizon line of a
photograph directly in the center of the
image. Putting the horizon line 1/3 of the
way from the top or 1/3 of the way from
the bottom creates a more attractive
composition.
• By placing the horizon line at the top third
will focus your image on the foreground
interest
• By placing the horizon line at the bottom
third will reduce focus on foreground and
send the viewers eyes to the background
and sky.
• So when composing your image ask
yourself, “How do I want my viewers eyes
to scan the image when they see my
picture?”
Bottom 1/3 line, so
viewer scans the sky
heavily, and people
seemed jammed in
compared to the sky
Horizon is centered
so eyes rest in the
middle of frame and
provide no movement
for the viewer to
capture interest
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Try to get specific focal
points onto the corners of
that middle square
DON’T BE A
PERFECTIONIST – Your
subjects of interest do not
need to be perfectly along
these lines, but generally
close
After mastering this
simple technique, BREAK
THE RULE
Suggestions: Split the
frame into only 4 sections
and at rare times center
• For this weeks photo session you will focus on using the Rule of Thirds – But you must
show how this rule applies by:
A) First taking a shot of your subject centered
B) Then taking another shot of the same subject using the rule of thirds.
• Save both images in your S:/YourName/Photosessions/RuleofThirds. Call the centered
image “TitleA” and the other image showing the rule of thirds “TitleB”.
• You will need 10 image pairs (so 20 photos total) to complete this assignment