Follow These 9 Composition Rules to Capture the Perfect Instagram Photos

Of course, taking good photos is not easy. But today, we are all actually amateur photographers with our smartphones. Therefore, we can take good photographs by knowing some basic photography techniques and making them a habit over time.

Let's take a look at the basic composition rules of photography, explained by National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry, who took the famous “Afghan Girl” photo, through the photographs he took.

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1) The Rule of Thirds

Place the areas you think are important in the photo on the lines. You should place the most important parts at the intersection points of the lines.

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2) Guidelines

Use natural lines in the image to guide the viewer's eye. These are called guide lines. These lines direct the viewer's eye and increase the weight of the subject placed in the direction indicated by the lines.

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3) Diagonal (Oblique) Lines

Correctly chosen diagonal (oblique) lines will add dynamism to the photo.

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4) Framing

Try to use natural frames and boundaries such as doors, windows, doorways, wide or narrow openings. Framing an image naturally gives more meaning to the subject in the photograph.

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5) Figure & Ground Contrast (Figure-Ground)

Try to capture the contrast between the main object of the photo and the background. To test this better, take the opposite side of the photo as in the example below. If the ground and the object take on each other's colors, it means you have achieved this contrast.

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6) Filling the Frame

To take particularly impressive portrait photos, get closer to your subject and try to fill the frame.

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7) Dominant Eye

Place the right or left eye in the center of the composition. This technique gives the viewer the impression that the person in the photo is following them.

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8) Pattern and Repetition

Observing a texture in a photograph creates a beautiful effect with harmony. However, if there is an element in the photograph that disrupts texture and repetition, this can create an even more beautiful effect with the contrast it creates.

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9) Symmetry

The harmony between the two halves is always pleasing to the eye.

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