Photo Tips: Rule Of Thirds

I first learned photography in 7th grade.  Every student was expected to choose an optional class for the year, usually it had to do with the arts or drama.  I chose photography.  I'm not really sure what got me interested in photography, but I fell in love the first day of class.  I knew that I wanted to capture a moment in time on film.  The first lessons in 7th grade were about composition.  

Composition is an "eye of the beholder" subject for many people.  What may look good to me, may not resonate with you.  But there are some general rules and following these rules will lead to better photographs.  

The first rule I want to discuss is the "Rule of Thirds"

There are two variations to this rule.  In landscape photography you generally want to break the photograph into three areas based on the overall tone or brightness of the image.  

Here are some examples of photographs taken in Snoqualmie Ridge with the three areas shown for each.

Here's the photo without any markup.

Here's how the photograph breaks down into three horizontal bands based on the tone of the band.

Here's another example.

Here's the same image with the bands of brightness shown.

And one more example.

The same image with the three bands shown.

Pretty simple, but once you start thinking in this way, you'll start to notice that most of the images you see in film, TV and print follow this rule.

Dividing the image into three bands allows the eye to focus on the image and quickly make sense of the composition.  It gives some rhythm to the image and an overall balance.  Photographs with all one level of brightness or even just two will tend to appear overly simple and abstract.  

There's a variation to the rule of thirds that you can apply when photographing people or more complex scenes involving objects or buildings for instance.  It divides the frame into equal thirds both horizontally and vertically.  The intersection of the lines provides a location for an off-center focal point.  A focal point is the place where your eye will naturally fall when first looking at the photo.  A photo will usually have one main focal point and maybe a secondary focal point.  There may even be a third or fourth point of interest, but I find it best to try and limit myself to two focal points.  

Here's an example.

The original image without markup.

Here's the same photo with an overlay showing the rule of thirds.

Notice how the hands are all pointed to the upper left focal point. The first focal point has the greatest area of contrast between light and dark tones.  Your eye is drawn into the photograph by these two elements.  

Your eye then drifts from the first focal point to the second focal point led by the fingers of the adult's hand, they point slightly downward toward the piggy bank opening.  

This shot was composed to align the primary and secondary focal points on the intersection of the "thirds" lines on the top left and bottom right.

Our eyes expect images to be arranged in a certain predictable composition.  This is one tip for enhancing your own photographs.  Next time I'll discuss variation and rhythm in bringing out life and interest in your photos.