What is The Rule of Thirds?

There are so many different ways to compose a photograph. I know it seems like you should be able to click the shutter and be done, but so much more goes into creating a beautiful image. What do you want the viewer to focus on? What do you want them to feel?

Today I want to talk about the Rule of Thirds. It’s a design principle where an image is divided into thirds, both horizontally and vertically. See those four red circles where the lines meet? The idea is to place the most interesting part of your image on one of those intersecting lines.

According to the Rule of Thirds,  you almost never want to place your subject in the middle of the scene. Placing them off center makes the image more pleasing to the eye.

Many cameras have a built in grid function that you can turn on. If yours doesn’t, it takes practice to train your eye. You can also use an editing software like Photoshop or PSE to crop your image using the rule of thirds. If you are using the cropping tool, just drag your photo until your subject is at one of the intersecting lines.

That’s it. A pretty easy way to step up your game when it comes to snapping photos of your kids. Now, keep in mind, rules are meant to be broken. I have tons of images that I love that don’t follow the rule of thirds. It’s just something to think about. Happy snapping!