I was having a casual conversation with a renowned photographer. And he proudly said that it was all about breaking the rules – he never follows any rules. He said he does that because if he followed the rules he would never have grown beyond those rules.
Though breaking the rules is creative, lately I’m getting the feeling as if it’s becoming a fashion statement – such statements seem to be lacking depth and knowledge and irresponsible. I have a more conservative approach to “breaking the rule” rule. It is this attitude that prepares you for a long haul at photography. So go ahead and break those rules; but here’s a checklist before you set out to break them.
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Know the rules
You can’t break something you don’t know about. You need to understand what the rule is, why is it practiced and what is the barrier it poses to your creativity. Certainly there must be a drawback else why would you bother to invest time in breaking the rule.
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Perfect the rules
Understanding the rule is not good enough. You should be perfect at following them. If you are not, you are already neglecting them. That’s breaking the rules in a sense – but it also implies what level of control you have on your art and equipment. Practice till you set some of the best examples for yourself. You will realize, at some level the rule gets in the way of your creativity and results. Now you know you can explore further.
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Don’t reinvent the wheel
Most of the times people just end up reinventing the wheel. I asked this photographer “Do you make use of the rule of thirds?” He answered that he never followed any rules. The rule of thirds is a rule of composition that helps you frame shots which are aesthetically more pleasing. This and similar rules are tested by specialists and through big surveys. When you make such a statement saying that you don’t follow the rule of thirds, you are saying you don’t invest efforts in making your composition more aesthetically pleasing. You may make some great compositions and then you may make some other – but in this context they are more of exceptions than rules. At the end of the day after shooting a few hundred shots you realize all the best shots follow some or the other rule of composition.
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Work to get better results
Breaking the rules is a great idea provided you get better results than you’d have got following the rules. What’s the point in breaking the rules when you end up with something which doesn’t make sense? Get better results – that’s the way creativity is rewarded.
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Experiment
Breaking the rules doesn’t work by itself. You have to spend hours experimenting with light, composition and several other parameters, get creative, visualize and try again. Explore your talent and get creative. Getting creative is the way to breaking the rules. It is when rules get in the way of your visualization and creativity that you have to chose not to follow them. Creativity is what makes a photograph stand out of the thousands. Creativity gives you the edge and you realize the individuality of the photographer within. The more you experiment, the more you get experienced and the better your work becomes.
So go ahead and break the rules. But tick off this list first.
Digital Photography Tips January 4, 2009 at 4:50 pm
There’s no such thing as rules in art .. only guidelines :)
Malcolm Turnbull March 9, 2009 at 3:34 am
The trouble with even bending the rules is that the inevitable comment from competition judges is that ‘the author has not followed the rules’ and your efforts are sidelined. Perhaps we need more modern judges of our work
peter k April 20, 2009 at 11:35 am
Mr. Turnbull, that’s a lot in what you say, only that you’re missing the point. The judges will say “the author has not followed the rules” as long as you’re just Malcolm Turnbull. When you’re Malcolm The Great Photographer you already can do whatever you want, and every single critic will say “wow!”. That’s the way art works and I think nothing can be done. So if it pleases your eye do whatever you think is right and, believe me, the satisfaction will all be yours !
katy@digital cameras February 9, 2010 at 8:14 am
So true. It is best to know the basics or the rules before you decide to do things yourself. Photography is an art, but like art as a whole, there are basics. Learn the basics and soon you’ll have your own style.
Shivanand Sharma February 9, 2010 at 8:25 am
Well said Katy.
photoglam February 19, 2010 at 5:08 am
Rules are made for scientific & measurable courses. Photography is an art that only with artistic inclinations has his heart, patience, & mind into it. So do we need rules for this? Don’t think so…
photoglam February 19, 2010 at 5:12 am
Rules are just like promises, they are usually meant to be broken. But make sure if you break it, you have a good reason why you did it & what you intend to do the next time you follow such rules.
pics world March 5, 2010 at 12:27 am
In the photography world, the only rules that are to be observed are the rules governing a state where the photograpers are going to explore. For as long as the pictures are artisitically done, then there are no rules.
peter kovak March 6, 2010 at 3:51 am
Well, dear Mr. pics world, your comment made me quite sad. You know, I remember somebody say that you cannot brake something that you don’t know, and it seems to me that you have no idea about composition. The rules that we talk about so often were not made by some kind of a shmock, but by the great dutch painters of the early Middle Ages, based (at that time) on empiric observation and understanding of the human eye and brain. And you know what ?…Even the great today’s photographers follow those rules, and if they brake them, they know how to do it, because they just know them. And I incline to believe them, because I’ve heard of Rembrandt or Alain Briot or Marc Adamus or…, but I’ve never heard about you !
Thank you !
Sabrina - salt lake city commercial photographer June 28, 2010 at 12:51 pm
I agree that you have to know the rules first before you even think of attempting to break them. If you are a newbie at photography, learning the rules and sticking to them would be a big help in improving your skills. Later on, as you progress in your craft, you will notice that you’re slowly developing your own style … your own take on different subjects. This is when you could leisurely stray away from the rules and just rely on your own abilities and judgment.
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commercial photography salt lake city August 12, 2010 at 8:13 am
Knowing the rules are far more important than breaking them. If you plan to break them, be sure to have an alternative to that rule. Or else all will fail.
Jean@commercial photographer salt lake city September 10, 2010 at 2:02 pm
I agree with photoglam. Photography is an art and it doesn’t have any measurements.When you are in photography and works with passion, everything will just come along. Your subject and you will have a distinct connection that will have a superb results. So I think it’s not necessary to break rules since there are no rules to follow.
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Kym February 18, 2011 at 12:47 am
As an artist, I’ve often wondered why people went to school for something that seemed to me as something that could not be taught. That to me, is the rules…. If you were to take a class it tells you the “correct” way to do things… What makes things “correct”?? The people that teach the class is who… When you have a vision, and you want to see it photographed as you see it, you have to know the science (the rules) behind it, to create that vision…. Then break those rules and bring out the artist in you..
Shivanand Sharma February 18, 2011 at 8:44 am
Couldn’t put it better myself. Great point.
cathy March 28, 2011 at 6:34 am
Nice post! . Photography is an art and it doesn’t have any measurements. the only rules that are to be observed are the rules governing a state where the photographers are going to explore, thanks for sharing…
sara May 3, 2011 at 7:59 am
Great post! and i agree, it is best to know the basics or the rules before you decide to do things, thanks for sharing….
steve @Portable computer June 9, 2011 at 7:37 am
This is a great post! and i agree knowing the rules are far more important than break them, or else all will fail.thanks for sharing this post! keep it up!
Sentot Hary October 28, 2011 at 11:37 pm
famous photographers often say, “learn the rules and then break the rules”. even more extreme, he said, “Do not think about those rules.” But what happens then, young photographers could not be bigger than the famous photographer. Since the famous photographer are only taught about a “sense”, where there is no theory about the copying of a “sense”