How to Break the “13 Rules” of Photography

Abandoned Stove. Cisco, Utah, 2013

A few days ago, in this blog entry, I posted a lucky list of 13 “Rules of Photography” that we all probably learned at one time or another. I also stressed that these were not rules, but guidelines.  In fact, I implied that breaking these so-called rules might be a way to go if you wanted to create unusual and eye-catching images. In that blog post, though, I never explained how or why you might break them.

Well, here are some ideas for you…

The Lucky List of 13 Rules and How to Break Them

1) Always place your horizon at the 1/3 or 2/3 point in the frame.

Break this rule by… putting the horizon somewhere else! Sometimes just a sliver of earth and the rest sky can be dramatic…or vice versa. Generally, minimize whatever part of the image is the least interesting.

2) Never put the horizon across the middle of your image.

Break this rule by… putting the horizon in the middle, of course! Try it with very symmetrical images or pictures of reflections.

3) Always make sure the horizon is straight.

Break this rule by… tilting the horizon in some way, remembering that diagonals can add tension and/or make the viewer slightly uncomfortable. A tilted horizon might also be used as a sort of leading line pointing to your center-of-interest. Be careful, though, sometimes tilting the horizon for no good reason can simply make the viewer’s eye roll right down that crooked horizon and out of the photograph.

4) Always place the center-of-interest on one of the 1/3 points on the Rule of Thirds grid and never place it in the center.

Break this rule by… putting that center-of-interest wherever your instinct says it should go, “Rule” of Thirds be damned. You can make an interesting image with your subject right at the edge, or even only partly in the frame. Again, make sure you are doing this on purpose and that it is inspired by your artistic instincts.

5) Always make sure your center-of-interest is sharp.

Break this rule by… using other ways to emphasize your subject instead of focus–make it larger than everything else, make it brighter or darker (contrasting more with the rest of the image), or make it an unusual color.

6) There should always be good detail in both the highlights and the shadows.

Break this rule by… sometimes blowing out the highlights or by leaving the shadows completely black. (Blown highlights seems to be a particularly popular wedding photography fad these days and sometimes that artistic effect can really work…making the bride look oh so angelic, for example). Dark shadows can add drama and interest to a photograph, especially black and white images.

7) Your color balance should always be neutral.

Break this rule by… trying different color temperatures on a given image. Tending ever so slightly toward the bluer side of the spectrum, for example, can make your photograph feel cold and/or distant while pushing toward the yellows and reds can add warmth and more intimacy to an image. Make sure the color balance you choose fits the mood of what you are trying to communicate.

8) Only shoot at the “golden hour” near sunrise or sunset.

Break this rule by… by shooting at any hour you please. It is true that mid-day can make for some very harsh, contrasty conditions if the sun is out, but this may actually suit the artistic effect you want–and it may be perfect for black and white. Also, an overcast day, at any hour, can make for good portrait lighting for people, animals, and flowers. Best of all is to shoot when weather conditions are unusual or changing, and this can be any hour of the day.

9) Always have a foreground object in your landscape photographs–in fact, make sure you have fore, middle AND background elements.

Break this rule by… using your telephoto to isolate unusual texture or pattern in a landscape. Remember that the idea of the fore-mid-far element composition is to show depth…so, you can try to show depth in other ways–especially with shadows and varying tones. How about a telephoto monochrome shot of a distant horizon that shows, say eight distinct “horizons” with varying tones of black to gray to white?

10) Strive to make your image as sharp as possible.

Break this rule by… blurring everything! Or use a Diana camera or pinhole camera or Lensbaby! Or use motion blur by deliberately moving your camera in various directions! An image does not have to be sharp to be interesting. Maybe if you are following the path of Saint Ansel and the Group f/64, yes, but that is not the only path in the wilderness!

11) Always focus 1/3 of the way into your scene to maximize depth-of-field.

Break this rule by… referring to hyperfocal distance tables or try this on-line calculator called DOFMaster. Or, try a few images with minimal depth-of-field to emphasize your in-focus subject.

12) Always use the lowest ISO setting to avoid digital noise (modern “grain”).

Break this rule by… deliberately setting a high ISO on your digital paintbrush and using the resultant “noise” as an artistic effect to add a grunge factor or old film look to the photograph. Again, make sure this effect corresponds to the mood you wish to portray in the image.

13) Always shoot away from the sun–that is, with the sun at your back. Never shoot into the sun.

Break this rule by… shooting into the sun to make silhouettes or try to create a sunburst effect around the sun. Some hints…underexpose to make sure you get a nice, black silhouette…Use a small aperture (say, f/22 or so) and shield 1/3 of the sun’s disc with a convenient object to make nice sun “stars”.

That should give you a few ideas on how to break the rules. Now go out and be an outlaw!