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~ OK. One of the tools in my photographic bucket is the so-called “Rule of Thirds” for Composition. EVERY image I take is taken with that in mind - EVERY image. Now, part of that process is to determine if this “Rule” applies to the image I’m about to create. Should it be centered?? Sometimes that is a Yes. Should it be Quartered? Maybe. Not ALL the time. Most of my images fall under the Rule of Thirds category. It is what I was taught early on in my imaging endeavor and has stuck quite truly. It’s a classic.
~ Here at UHH, I find that a lot of people know about the Rule of Thirds. I see the axiom “Rules are Made to be BROKEN” thrown around here quite a bit to the point that it seems that CENTERING the subject in the frame is VERY much the norm - for a lot of people/artists here!
~ In my humble opinion, it would seem that in MANY of the images posted here at UHH, many, many would, compositionally, look and have more feeling than the quick CENTER Autofocus sensor can deliver. Focus and Recompose, comes to mind or move to a different sensor. I know, I know - BIF is a total thing in itself so that is not a consideration with this post. To me, BIF is “GET the Dang Shot!!”
~ I'm NOT bashing anyone here - this is just a general observation. Meant to see what others think. I am not judging right or wrong with this. Curiosity.

...Anyways… looking at your OWN images, are you SATISFIED with what you are doing Compositionally with your images?? Is the Subject Centered, the normal composition you desire?
^ Please Post an image!! Let us see your point!! ...Whooohooo!!!

Here's one I shot this morning and posted to Landscape Forum for feedback.

With landscapes in particular, I often have no primary subject so I don't think of centering or thirds, just kind of balance, I guess.

The sun could be primary subject and would be close to thirds area if I crop a little sky. Because I wanted the sun's brightness to bleed onto the church steeple, I had no other choice for where to stand. I could, however, have chosen a wider view and/or cropped for different result.


sunrise feb 18 on Flickr

I'll state my case a bit differently. Rules don't do much if you want to be creative. In any case for every good photo using rules of thirds you can find equally good photos that don't, for every one that avoids putting an object of interest dead in the middle there are many great photos that do just that. You do have to start somewhere as a beginner and some of these rules will let you get a toehold but the sooner you think outside the box and truely engage with your subject and the enviroment the better for you to unleash your creativity. Just look at images by the likes of Alister Benn, Guy Tal, Alex Noriega, Ian Plant and Hans Strand to name a few. Heck go look at Eliot Porter! Don't fret rules, get out there and engage!