Does anyone use Rule of Thirds, Golden Ratio, etc. consciously while photographing?

[KenElevenShadows]

Just wondering. For me, Rule of Thirds...I am sometimes conscious of this, but am largely intuitive, going by feel, moving the camera around quite a bit until it "feels" right emotionally and compositionally.

 

Do remember...things like "The Rule of Thirds" are definitely not rules. They're guidelines. And they often work because we often find them visually pleasing. But there are plenty of other ways for composition to work as well.

[KuruPrionz]

I was a photo major at community college, took some art classes and read books so I am familiar with the Rule Of Thirds and the Golden Ratio.

I don't think when I compose, whether photography or drawing. Sometimes it gets me in trouble and sometimes I naturally come up with something good. 

I am not opposed to these ideas, they have a certain validity and beauty. I read an article once that showed how the Golden Ratio could be applied to a Stradivarious violin and it was both pretty precise and altogether lovely. Violins are pretty instruments beyond any doubt. 

 

I've also read a good bit on the natural fifth in music. My conclusion is that a small group of keyboardists centuries ago in Europe conspired to make adjustments to the natural harmonic order/behavior of strings, woodwinds and horns so they could play slightly out of tune in every key on a keyboard. 

 

This has somehow become "standard", at least for some people. Fortunately, many peoples completely ignore it so we can still hear authentic blues, jazz, Middle Eastern, Indian, Asian and indigenous musics from around the world. Most of the time it only bothers me a little but mandolins annoy me to no end, they just never sound in tune to my ears. 

[Lou Gehrig Charles]

I often use Rule of Thirds....  Not for every photo of course but it is uncanny how often I find it applicable or helpful.

[KenElevenShadows]

4 hours ago, Lou Gehrig said:

I often use Rule of Thirds....  Not for every photo of course but it is uncanny how often I find it applicable or helpful.

 

I feel like it might be the single most helpful thing, partially because it works really well, but also because it's so easy to visualize and do.

 

The Golden Ratio is a little more ephemeral. I also feel like you can often "see" or "draw" a Golden Ratio on a surprising amount of compositions. 

[KenElevenShadows]

20 hours ago, KuruPrionz said:

I was a photo major at community college, took some art classes and read books so I am familiar with the Rule Of Thirds and the Golden Ratio.

I don't think when I compose, whether photography or drawing. Sometimes it gets me in trouble and sometimes I naturally come up with something good. 

I am not opposed to these ideas, they have a certain validity and beauty. I read an article once that showed how the Golden Ratio could be applied to a Stradivarious violin and it was both pretty precise and altogether lovely. Violins are pretty instruments beyond any doubt. 

 

I've also read a good bit on the natural fifth in music. My conclusion is that a small group of keyboardists centuries ago in Europe conspired to make adjustments to the natural harmonic order/behavior of strings, woodwinds and horns so they could play slightly out of tune in every key on a keyboard. 

 

This has somehow become "standard", at least for some people. Fortunately, many peoples completely ignore it so we can still hear authentic blues, jazz, Middle Eastern, Indian, Asian and indigenous musics from around the world. Most of the time it only bothers me a little but mandolins annoy me to no end, they just never sound in tune to my ears. 

 

I enjoy playing in different scales, and am able to do so even with one of my keyboard modules, the Proteus III World, which I still have. Weird thing. I don't use it a lot, but when I do, nothing else will do. 

 

I did not take art classes, so I learned The Rule of Thirds and Golden Ratio mostly by stumbling across it online or people pointing it out in one of my compositions. I knew they existed and generally knew what The Rule of Thirds were, but didn't really know it super well.

 

Then again, probably ten or twelve years ago, I didn't know an f-stop from a bus stop either.

[Mike Martin]

Rule of thirds mostly but I'm always just looking for leading lines towards the subject. 

[KenElevenShadows]

Leading lines are so important since they are often what draw you in, directing your eye toward the subject.