The rule of thirds - The golden mean
Posted by moto | Filed under Landscape
The rule of thirds was used by painters as early as 1979 according to which by placing the subject off-centre you create more tension and interest. It allows you to make a viewer to see the whole image not only focusing on the centrally placed objects. This rule can be applied to any kind of panorama as long as you can divide your frame by two horizontal and vertical lines.
Imagine that your frame is split into 9 sections by two equally placed vertical and horizontal lines. If you want to draw your viewer’s attention place your subject at or at least near a point where the lines cross. This makes the viewer’s eye to move around the image and allows creating a balanced composition with the most powerful point where we naturally look first.
Placing a subject in the centre
Sometimes you need to place your subject in the centre so the eye leads to a central subject which can help to prevent the image from feeling static. Check your landscape first. Get up early, or stay out late, to see how natural light picks out different elements in a landscape; a hillside in warm light placed off-centre against a cool shadowy background will demand the viewer’s attention.
2 Responses to “The rule of thirds - The golden mean”
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RYErnest Says:
November 30th, 2008 at 11:07 amNice post u have here
Added to my RSS reader -
mark Says:
April 15th, 2009 at 2:27 amthanks !! very helpful post!