Odd numbers are best? - tips for good Photography

Sorry I have not posted recently -been rushed off my feet with work.

A trick many professionals use is the 'rule' of odd numbers. Compositions are generally more pleasing when there is either one, three or other odd number elements. These make good compositions and we perceive a greater sense of balanced tension in the photographs.

That is not to say you cannot photograph pairs, etc. but the composition has to be thought through much more to make it work.

Here are a couple of examples:

Notice the balance even thought the solitary tree is not in the middle. This off-centre composition gives the image tension and interest. I call the picture 'nearly perfect' because of that solitary, partially leafless branch in the top right which to my eye spoils the wonderful shape of this tree. I could have removed it with photoshop software and the composition might have been even stronger, but something stopped me, perhaps the branch adds to the uniqueness of this tree. You might recognise it by the way as the tree Darcy rides away beneath in the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice, and can be found in Lyme Park.

Also notice what happens when a second tree is introduced:

It was much more difficult to compose a pleasing image, not that this image was the best, and no matter how I cropped it, it never caugth my eye the way the first image did.

In th following picture the three ascending stems also make for a better balance than if I had only included two in the final crop.

Hope this has been food for thought, and as always I would encourage you to try it out and see what you think.