One of the most underrated but important parts of photographic composition is the Margin. Unlike the Rule of Thirds and the Golden Ratio and Negative Space, it doesn’t seem to get much attention, but it’s vital in composing an image that will give you and your viewer breathing room later on. I’m always making sure to check the margins in the camera.

An important aspect of photography is understanding what your photographs might be used for. With snapshots and personal photos, you can relax on the details and throw caution to the wind, but professional and fine art photography needs more care.

For example, landscape photographs are often taken with the intent to print and frame onto a wall. Portraits may be used in any number of places, such as the back of a book, a square or circle crop on a website or account profile, within a magazine design or even in a print.

While most our cameras are typically 3:2 or 4:3 aspect ratio, paper and frame ratios don’t tend to follow this and may be anywhere from square to 5:4 to 3:1 panoramic ratios. When we’re out in the field or in the studio, we should take a moment to consider how we may want to use the photographs we’re trying to capture.

Margins? I Know What A Margin Is!

Of course you know what a margin is, but have you come across a situation where you really love a photograph you captured but you left yourself too little space on the edge? You’re trying to fit a 3x2 image into an 8x10 frame and you’re stuck? Or you have to crop a 2:3 image by 5-10% on each side and things are feeling cramped?

This is what I’m talking about with the Margin rule.

Every time I put my eye to the viewfinder to compose, I always make sure to consider and adjust the outer 5-10% of the composition I’m framing with the camera to ensure that nothing is feeling too cramped or pressed against the edge of the frame. I try to make sure that lines and shapes that extend out of frame do so in a way that is tidy.

A good example and analogy is where to cut off a subject’s limbs if they are not being photographed in full. Important joints like the knees, ankles, hips and elbows should preferrably be fully in or fully out of frame in a lot of cases. Another example is tree branches and edges or objects in landscapes. Ensuring that they extend out of the frame fully or are contained inside the majority of the frame will help to create a natural feeling composition, a window into a painted scene.

Take a look at these examples below to see that the primary subject matter typically never leaves this inner 80-90% space.