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It’s a debate that’s been raging on since the dawn of photography: The rule of Thirds,
vs. the Golden Ratio.
So what are they, and is one REALLY better than the other?
Hey guys, Tara here for Dnews - and those of you who enjoy photography have probably
heard of the Rule of Thirds.
It’s a general rule of composition for both photos and film, and it’s the reason almost
all cameras come with those gridlines that divide the photo into 9 equal sections.
The basic formula is that the object you’re trying to highlight or bring attention to
in your photos, should be positioned either along on a gridline or at an intersection
of two lines.
The idea being that it creates more tension and interest, than simply centering the object.
For hundreds of years, the Rule of Thirds has been one of the most universally accepted
guidelines for composing photographs.
But recently, many have chosen to eschew it in favor of the Golden Ratio.
So what is the Golden Ratio, and how does it apply to photography?
Well, much like Pi, the Golden Ratio is an irrational number, roughly approximated to
1.618.
And that number is based on a very specific formula.
Suppose you have a finite line A, and somewhere in the middle of that line is a point, separating
it into two segments of different lengths.
We’ll call the longer line B and the shorter line C.
Now, if you were divide the length of B by C, and it was EQUAL to the length of A over
B, then those two numbers would be in the golden ratio.
And from there, you can create something called a Golden Spiral.
It’s a logarithmic spiral - which are found all over the place in nature - but with a
growth factor that’s equal to the golden ratio.
Meaning that for every quarter-turn the spiral makes, the line gets 1 Golden Ratio further
away from its center point.
Eventually creating something that looks like this.
And it’s this spiral, that’s the basis for the Golden Ratio rule of photography.
The idea is that by overlaying the Golden Spiral on top of your photographs, you want
the focal object to line up at the intersection of those two red lines.
So if you were taking a portrait, for example, you’d want the person’s eyes to be right
around that point.
You can also expand those red lines along the length of the image, and mirror them on
the other side, ultimately creating something called a Phi grid - Phi being the symbol for
the Golden Ratio.
So when people talk about using the Golden Ratio to compose their photos, what they’re
really talking about, is using a Phi Grid - instead of the grid used for the Rule of
Thirds.
As far as grids go, they look relatively similar.
But a lot of people claim that the Phi grid is a better choice, because it produces a
more balanced image - especially when it comes to landscape photography.
The main complaint with the Rule of Thirds is that it can look too obvious - whereas
the Phi grid, makes photos appear more natural and less rigid.
For now, it seems like both options are still valid rules of photography.
But the Golden Ratio is definitely the better choice for certain scenarios, like landscapes,
and in general - it’s just a little more pleasing to the eye.
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Would you guys agree with that statement?
And what rules of thumb do YOU use when taking photos?
You can let us know your thoughts in the comments below - otherwise, thanks for watching!