ruleofthirds digital photovideo Virgin Media

While there are times when you need to place your subject in the centre of the frame, you can often create more interesting, balanced and powerful compositions by placing the subject off-centre in your photograph; this immediately causes the viewer's eye to move around the image.

Centrally placed subjects tend to focus attention in the middle of the image and leave it there, making pictures feel flat as a result; if you're trying to create an abstract or graphic representation of reality, this might be exactly the effect you're looking for, but you can strengthen your compositions with a subtle shift of the focal point.

In the picture above, the position of the sunlit peak at one of the 'points of power' gives the photograph clarity & we know what we're supposed to be looking at, because all the elements lead us there.

Know the rules

One of the most frequently used ways of directing the viewer's eye to the centre of interest in a picture is by following the rule of thirds. The idea is to imagine that your frame is split into nine equal sections by two horizontal lines and two vertical lines. Then, by placing your subject, or a key part of your scene, at or near a point where the lines cross a point of power you'll lead your viewer's eye through the image, and create a more balanced composition; you'll be surprised at how dominant smaller subjects can become in a much larger scene.

Break the rules

Not every image in a shoot should conform to the rule of thirds ─ otherwise you'll end up creating a series of similarly paced pictures. Sometimes, all it takes is a slight nudge of the main subject off-centre to create a more balanced picture.

Close ups

The same rules can be applied to any subject; they're not limited to landscapes and other wide-angle work. Employ the rule of thirds to faces, flowers or other macro images, by moving a key feature to a point of power.

Use lines

Learn to see patterns, lighting and lines that'll help to take your viewers to the point of power where you've placed your key feature. Diagonal lines can help here, particularly when short ones on one side of the subject are combined with long ones on the other side. Get up early, or stay out late, to see how natural light picks out different elements in a landscape; a hillside bathed in warm light placed off-centre against a cool shadowy background will demand the viewer's attention.

In the picture below, the light's the subject. By placing it off-centre, we're free to roam around the image but we always return to the same spot. The top-right point feels the most powerful, and it's where we naturally look first. There's enough foreground interest to ensure that the image feels full, but not enough distracting elements to take our attention away from the main subject & the brightest part of the scene.

Read our article on composition techniques

Read our article on colour temperature

Read our article on colour techniques