For many artists the word "rule" sets up a mind block..
Since I was the one that asked what made it a "rule" in the first place, I will try and offer my perspective on this.
So-called "rules" and "guidelines" can be an aid to an artist (or photographer) in setting up a composition. Some painters put a grid on their canvas that marks out specific compositional notions. However, when we look at something, be it a painting, drawing, or photograph, the "rules" are meaningless. What has been presented either works or it doesn't work. Whether or not it works rarely has anything to do with the "rules." If it's static, it is that the composition and the content don't work as presented, not that someone didn't follow the "rules." If it feels like there's a lot of dead space, once again, it's a combination of content and composition that make it feel that way. There are lots of pieces that don't follow the "rules" that work fine.
What this means is that a "criticism" that something doesn't follow the "rules" is trite and simplistic. It is a statement of mechanical principles, and although art may use mechanical principles in its creation, in the end we are not looking at those principles but the finished piece. While it's true that many centered compositions are static and uninteresting, it's also true that a good photographer can create a centered composition that is interesting, maybe static by design, and maybe not if the subject is right.
FWIW, the "rule of thirds" has always struck me as a dumbing down of the concept of the Golden Section (there are variants on the name, usually with the word "Golden" in them.) Contrary to at least one comment, this was known in Greek times, long before Renaissance painting and is based on certain mathematical principles. It's more complex than the "rule of thirds" and worth understanding. It's interesting to me that every painter I've spoken with about composition knows about it and never heard of "thirds," while quite a few photographers mention "thirds," which maybe speaks to learning from popular magazines rather than more rigorous study. An introductory art class or some reading of the literature would go a long way to moving beyond a simplistic approach to composition.
Jeff Spirer
Photos: http://www.spirer.com
One People: http://www.onepeople.com/
Surfaces and Marks: http://www.withoutgrass.com
