“Rule of Thirds” = a useful cliché?

[bobwysiwyg]

Perhaps is should be retitled "The Guide of Thirds".

+1

[paulr]

I've used that Ansel photograph in a slide lecture as an example of formulaic composition. While I didn't belabor the golden mean / rule of thirds part of it, I used it to illustrate conventional and uninteresting ways to suggest space vs. more engaging and innovative ones.

This isn't a dig against Ansel ... I used some of his work as positive examples, too. But The boulder picture struck me as a clear example of him in a kind of formal rut.

The point? In this case only that you can follow every rule of composition and end up with a functional but boring visual structure.

The rules--or whatever you want to call them--have their place in analysis, and perhaps as teaching aids (like training wheels). But i don't think people do their best work when they're actively thinking about conforming to anything.

[Peter De Smidt]

Let's face it, most beginners put the subject in the middle of the frame, which in many cases leads to an insipid composition. Telling them about the rule of thirds usually results in a significant improvement in the composition of their photographs. After they have that down, you can suggest that they try some compositions that work better breaking the rule. Thus learning compositional guidelines can be a useful step in getting better as a photographer.

[toyotadesigner]

It would be a lot better if you teach beginners to keep the horizon leveled or how to avoid perspective distortions.

[Peter De Smidt]

It would be a lot better if you teach beginners to keep the horizon leveled or how to avoid perspective distortions.

Teach all of these rules. Once a student has following them down, teach them how to break them.

[percepts]

don't worry about your horizons. Nobody cares. Look at what this guy got away with

Attachment 31898

[paulr]

Putting those rules in perspective is key, otherwise you're students will approach photography like this.