An introduction to composition
Basic guidelines and techniques for photographic compositionLet’s begin with the basics
Below you’ll find a few simple, basic guidelines for composing your photos.

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Summary:
- Your photo should have a subject.
- Make sure that subject is not just “out there”, but carefully positioned within the frame of your photo.
Let’s move on!
The three principal composition tpyes
- Diagonal composition
- Center composition
- The golden ratio / rule of thirds
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Summary:
- In most cases it’s worth following some kind of “rule” when composing your photo
- Certain composition “rules” are somehow more pleasing to the human eye/brain
- You can decide to apply a combination of these guidelines (more on this later)
A few examples of center composition:
A handful of clever tips for composing your photo:
- Protect your composition
- Use off-center positioning
- Include leading lines
Find more info in the interactive block below!

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Summary:
- The basics of photographic composition are very easy to learn, and you can make substantial progress in the blink of an eye!
- Consciously composing your photos will help you make them more meaningful, unique, interesting and straightforward.
A good example of protecting the composition. Check out the precise position of the horse’s legs: their forms don’t touch or cut into each other at all.
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About the author:
Bence Gyulai is a photographer and professional photography teacher. Grand Prize-winning photographer of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, regular invited speaker at photography events, founder and host of visualgangster.com. More info & images >>