What is the Rule of Thirds?

The rule of thirds is an imaginary board drawn across an image to break it into nine equal squares. The four points where these lines intersect are strongest focal points. The lines themselves are the second strongest focal points.

To use the rule of thirds you need to imagine the grid on all of your images as you compose them in the viewfinder. If you have an autofocus camera You can use the autofocus points as reference..

When an object is alone in an image, the strongest position is the left hand line.

When a subject is not alone there is a hierarchy of image strength. The subject in the foreground will naturally have more strength than the subject in the background. However, the rule of thirds placement can emphasize or reduce this strength. The bottom right point is the strongest for multiple subjects and the upper left point is the weakest.

In the case of single subjects the subject's eyes are placed along the top rule of third line. In multiple subject portraits the subject faces are placed on the rule of thirds lines. This is why a multiple-row posing generally works better than a one-row posing.

Avoid placing the focal point in the dead center of the image as this generally creates a bland composition. In a horizontal arrangment, the horizon line should be placed along one of the two imaginary horizontal lines, and in a vertical arrangement, the subject should be placed along one of the imaginary vertical lines. When possible, also strive to have your subject facing into the picture.

With this grid in mind the ‘rule of thirds’ now identifies four important parts of the image that you should consider placing points of interest in as you frame your image.(grid2)

Not only this - but it also gives you four ‘lines’ that are also useful positions for elements in your photo.(grid1)