The Rule of Thirds

The rule of thirds is one of the fundamental principles of composition in photography that can make you photos instantly standout, shine, and more interesting.

Imagine that you divide the image into three equal parts by drawing two horizontal and two vertical lines (see image below), leaving nine regions of equal size. The points where the four lines intersect are known as “Points of Interest”.

Studies show that when people look at a picture they fix their attention on one of these four points. That’s why when you look through the lens of your camera and locate your target in one of these points, the picture is more attractive and balanced.

When photographing people we can put one of his eyes on a point of interest and the body along an imaginary line (see image below). The lines can help us to locate objects in the image. When we place the objects, in this case people, along of the lines we draw attention to more than one point of interest.

In this case we can see how the hand of the bride falls into one of the points of interest. The observer is not only attracted to the focus of attention of the image, which is the bride, but by looking at the hand of the bride, something else stands out: the action. We can use the points of interest to highlight the action and emotions in the pictures In this case the points of interest describe the picture: The bride is dancing and she is having fun!

In this photo we see the rule of thirds applied to an inanimate object, the rings, but at the left side of the image.

Remember that you don’t have to follow these rules always, but it is very important to master them to know when break them.

I invite you to practice this rule and leave your comments and questions.