Free Rule of Thirds and Golden Mean Actions
by your Shutterfreaks Team
As you are learning composition, the so-called "Rule" of Thirds can be helpful. I prefer to use it
as a guideline, rather than a rule, but I do find it useful when making compositional decisions.
To use the rule of thirds when shooting, visualize a 3 x 3 grid overlaying the scene you see in your viewfinder or LCD.
When composing your shot, try to locate the main objects in your photo at the intersection of these grid lines.
In other words, place your main objects 1/3 up from the bottom and 1/3 over from the left,
or 1/3 down from the top and 1/3 over from the right, etc.
Some folks think the Golden Mean is a better compositional guideline.
Downloads
Our Image
As an example, let's see how this photo measures up to the Rule of Thirds.
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With the Rule of Thirds Grid
Here's what we see after we run the Rule of Thirds Action.
We see that several of our main compositional elements fall on the lines or the intersection of
two lines.
Would the image be improved if the vertical line at the right went through the middle of the walkway,
instead of the left post? Or does the current composition provide more "tension?" This is the kind
of analysis you can do on your images.
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Another example
Let's see how this photo measures up to the Golden Mean. Does that tree appear to be in the "right"
place?
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With the Golden Mean Grid
Here's what we see after we run the Golden Mean Action.
It appears that we can be pretty happy about where we put that tree :)
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One More Example, Using both the Rule of Thirds and The Golden Mean
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The red lines represent the Rule of Thirds grid, and the golden lines represent the Golden Mean Grid.
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Free Actions
If you'd like to see how your photos "measure up" against the
Rule of Thirds
or the Golden Mean, we have some FREE actions that can help:
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Download the appropriate file below
and save it to your hard disk.
- Unzip it.
- Follow the instructions in the ReadMe file to install the actions.
for Photoshop
for Photoshop Elements 1-5
for Photoshop Elements 6
for Photoshop Elements 7 and later
More Advanced Actions
If you'd like a more advanced action that will help you crop your images to conform to the Rule of Thirds
and the Golden Mean, check out our Rule of Thirds Pro Actions:
for Photoshop
Not available for Photoshop Elements