Composition theory:

Golden Ratio, also known as the divine proportion, is a theory that suggests that the ratio of 1:1.618 is seen as a universally efficient way of drawing in a viewer. It is not only used in photography but art, architecture and even by major companies like Twitter and Apple. It was first used by Italian mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci in the 1200sAD. The image is gridded into 9 intersections with the bottom and top being a third of the way down and up, with the middle intersection marking the centre line.





Rule of thirds:

The rule of thirds suggests that an image be divided into 9 equal cells, marked by two individual horizontal lines and two individual vertical lines. It is believed by advocates of this technique, that by using the rule of thirds, more tension and interest are created where the subject is concerned as opposed to simply centring the subject with the point of interest approach to composition.



Photographers who use the technique will align the first horizontal line with the subject's eye in a portrait for example.
Where the landscape is concerned photographers will commonly align the horizon with the top of bottom line of the centre intersection.When photographers use the rule of thirds, they are marking the point of interest, thus creating a more natural perspective for the viewer as opposed to simply centring a shot, this can also help to create more than one point of interest.