Day One: 1/3 of The Way There

Rules in art are meant to be broken. But first, you’ve got to know them.

And most of the “rules” in photography serve a distinct purpose. These ‘rules’ can actually help guide the viewer’s eye and help them see the magic in the same light you do.

My first cat, Taiga, and I from 2018.

I used to be the type of person who would always center the subject and try to fill the entire frame with it. It worked out, sometimes. But more often than not I was left frustrated and a bit defeated. The subject was definitely visible…but something was off; it felt flat, the charm factor was obliterated.

My first cat, Taiga. An absolute doll and subject of many photo experiments.

Let’s talk about a great foundation in photography: The Rule of Thirds

It’s really easy and something our phone’s camera (and fancier camera) help us to see.

Open your camera app and see for yourself.

Don’t see a photo grid when you open your camera app?

How to Enable Photo Grid:
iPhone / Android

Photo Grid as displayed on my OnePlus

The rule of thirds uses this grid pictured in the screenshot. The “rule” is that you should place your “focal point” (subject) along the horizontal or vertical lines, or ideally their intersections, that comprise this grid.

In the images below, I’ve color coded this information to be easier to see:

• Yellow circles highlight the intersections

• Orange shows vertical lines, pink shows horizontal lines

Why does this work? Our eyes naturally gravitate towards those lines, especially where they intersect, and not towards the center of the shot. Think of when you walk into a room for the first time: your eyes don’t look straight ahead, but rather dance around points of interest. The rule of thirds is build on how we naturally scan a scene.

Taiga struck a dignified pose, but I hadn’t mastered the rule of thirds just yet.

Those lines and intersections are the secret to taking a well composed photo. Experimenting with placing my subjects along these lines and intersections has been very enriching.

Using this structure helps viewers to scan the image naturally and connect with it instantly; the “wow!” feeling happens faster.

Here’s your challenge:

• Take 3 pictures of yourself or a (furry) friend with different compositions

  • Center the subject in one picture

  • Align the subject along any vertical line in one picture

  • Align the subject’s eyes along the top horizontal line in one picture

Don’t worry about perfection. Instead, focus on how the placement changes the feeling of each photo.

Be sure to leave a comment and let me know which picture you took was your favorite. I’d love to see it!