In photography what does rule of thirds mean?

[ruckaz1]

Can someone help me out pleaseee? I don't understand what it means?

[Lucien B]

Divide your picture into thirds both horizontally and vertically (it will look like a "tic-tac-toe" board. The "Rule of Thirds" has two components:
a. Horizon placement (usually should be in either the upper or lower third), leaving either 1/3 sky or 2/3 sky.
b. Subject placement (generally subject should be placed near the intersecting vertical and horizontal lines, but not in the center of the picture)

Finally, remember these are "Guidelines" not "Rules" and each photograph should be judged on its own merit for application of the rule.

For illustrations see the examples and instruction from the source listed below

[gregthedesigner]

Its basically a way - that some people say - to make a photograph more pleasing to view. What you do is pretend to visualize a tic-tac-toe board on a photo graph. You'll have two vertical lines and two horizontal lines. Those lines made 9 squares in the photograph (imaging where you draw or Xs and Os if you were playing tic-tac-toe.

The lines and where they intersect can be used as guides to lining up certain features of the photograph. It keeps things nice and neat and also equidistant to each other. The rule of thirds though, should just be used as a guide since it works great with some photos, not so with other photos.

A photo that you set up, like a still shot, or a landscape shot of scenery is easy to apply the rule of thirds to through your cameral lens. But an action shot, such as a sporting even, vehicles, or a motion blur are tough to apply the rule of thirds to since everything is moving.